UC-NRLF. 


515 


«Hotnmontocaltl)  of 


MANUAL 


AGRICULTURAL  LAWS. 


ISSUED   BY 

THE  STATE  BOARD  OF  AGRICULTURE,  STATE  HOUSE,  BOSTON. 
WILFRID  WHEELER,  SECRETARY. 


COMPILED  AND  EDITED  BY 

R.  EDWARDS  ANNIN,  JR.,  A.B. 


1916. 


BOSTON: 

WRIGHT  &  POTTER  PRINTING  CO.,  STATE  PRINTERS, 

32  DERNE  STREET. 

1916. 


•SOJfl 


MANUAL 


AGRICULTURAL  LAWS 


ISSUED   BY 

THE  STATE  BOARD  OF  AGRICULTURE,  STATE  HOUSE,  BOSTON. 
WILFRID  WHEELER,  SECRETARY. 


COMPILED  AND  EDITED  BY 

R.  EDWARDS  ANNIN,   JR.,   A.B. 


1916. 


BOSTON : 

WRIGHT  &  POTTER  PRINTING  CO.,  STATE  PRINTERS, 

32  DERNE  STREET. 

1916. 


DEfT. 


APPROVED  BY 
THE  STATE  BOARD  OF  PUBLICATION. 


TABLE   OF   CONTENTS. 


PAGE 

INTRODUCTION,         ...........         5 

I.     STATUTES  PROVIDING  STATE  AID,  .......         9 

1.  State  Board  of  Agriculture,     .......         9 

Dairy  Bureau,    .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .12 

2.  Agricultural  and  Horticultural  Societies,  .          .          .          .13 

3.  State  Ornithologist, .          .20 

4.  Encouragement  of  Poultry  Breeding,        .          .          .          .          .21 

5.  Encouragement  of  Agriculture  among  Children  and  Youths,        .       22 

6.  Encouragement  of  Orcharding,         ......       22 

7.  Special  Exhibitions, 23 

II.     STATUTES  PROVIDING  FOR  INSPECTION,   REGULATION  AND  CONTROL,      24 

1.  Nursery  Inspection,        ........  24 

2.  Apiary  Inspection,          ........  29 

3.  Commercial  Fertilizers,  .......  32 

4.  Commercial  Feedstuffs,  .......  39 

III.  STATUTES  RELATING  TO  RURAL  CREDIT,  CO-OPERATION  AND  DRAIN- 

AGE  46 

1.  Credit  Unions,       .........       46 

2.  Farmland  Banks, 57 

3.  Co-operative  Associations,       .......       69 

4.  County  Farm  Bureaus,  .......       72 

5.  Drainage  of  Low  Lands,          .          .          .          .          .          .          .75 

Improvement  of  Meadows  and  Swamps,        .          .          .          .75 

Construction  of  Roads  to  Swamps,        .....       79 

Reclamation  of  Wet  Land,  .          .          .          .          .          .81 

Cranberry  Land  and  Ice  Ponds,  ......       84 

IV.  GAME  AND  DOG  STATUTES,  .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .86 

1.  Deer, 86 

Protection  of  Moose,  .......       88 

Protection  of  Deer  from  Dogs,     ......       88 

Damages  from  Deer  Loss,   .......       88 

2.  Dog  Damages,       .          .          ...          .          .          .          .          .89 

Protecting  Domestic  Animals  from  Injury  by  Dogs,        .          .       97 

3.  Sale  of  Rabbits, 98 

4.  Propagation  of  Pheasants,       .          .          .          .          .          .          .99 

Killing  of  Pheasants,  .          .          .          .          .          .          .100 

V.     STATUTES  RELATING  TO  MARKETING 101 

1.  Public  Markets, .     101 

2.  Weights  and  Measures  of  Farm  Produce,  ....     101 

3.  Millers, 103 

4.  Inspection  and  Sales  Act,        .  103 

Beef, '.':''.  103 

Fruits,  Nuts  and  Vegetables '.          .  104 

Grain  and  Meal,          ......  .  106 

Hay  and  Straw, .  107 

Potatoes,  Onions  and  Salt,            ....  .  109 

Timothy  or  Herdsgrass  Seed,        ......  109 

Vinegar,    ....  109 


49274- 


V.     STATUTES  RELATING  TO  MARKETING  —  Con.  PAGE 

5.  Sale  of  Meat  and  Provisions,  .          .          .          .          .          .          .111 

Sale  of  Unwholesome  Food, 115 

Slaughterhouses,          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .115 

6.  Apple  Grading, 116 

VI.    , MISCELLANEOUS  STATUTES  RELATING  TO  AGRICULTURE,  .          .          .     121 

1.  Fence  Viewers  and  Field  Drivers,    ......     121 

Fence  Viewers,  .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .121 

Pounds  and  Impounding  of  Cattle.     Field  Drivers,         .          .     127 

2.  Trespass  Laws, 133 

3.  Registration  of  StaUions 136 

4.  Destruction  of  Insect  Pests,    .......     137 

5.  Suppression  of  Tent  Caterpillar,  Leopard  Moth  and  Elm  Beetle,     137 

6.  Inspection  Charges  forbidden,          ......     138 

7.  Poultry  Thieving, 138 

Poultry-thieving  Posters, 139 

8.  Liability  for  Injuries  to  Farm  Labor,        .....     139 
VII.     OPINIONS  OF  THE  ATTORNEY-GENERAL,  .....     140 

1.  Agricultural  and  Horticultural  Societies,  ....     140 

Election  of  Delegate  to  Board  of  Agriculture,         .          .          .     140 

Right  to  Representation  on  Board  of  Agriculture,  .          .     140 

VIII.     DIGEST  OF  SUPREME  COURT  DECISIONS,         .          .          .          .          .141 

1.  Drainage  of  Wet  Lands,          .          .          .          .          .          .          .141 

2.  Dog  Damages, 143 

3.  Sales  and  Marketing,     ........     147 

4.  Fences  and  Fence  Viewers,      .          .          .          .          .          .          .     148 

5.  Field  Drivers  and  Pound  Keepers,  ......     155 

6.  Ownership  of  Manure, 162 

7.  Farm  Labor, 163 

8.  Cranberry  Bogs 165 

9.  Miscellaneous, 167 

LIST  OF  ENFORCING  OFFICERS,          ........     169 

INDEX  OF  STATUTES,         ..........     173 

INDEX  OF  CASES  BY  NAME, 177 

INDEX  OF  CASES  BY  VOLUME,   .........     179 

GENERAL  INDEX,     ...  .     182 


INTRODUCTION. 


"  Ignorantia  legis  neminem  excusat."  That  every  citizen  must 
be  presumed  to  know  the  law  —  though  as  a  matter  of  fact  not 
even  the  wisest  jurist  can  know  it  in  its  entirety  —  seems  at 
first  blush  to  be  a  harsh  rule.  Further  consideration,  however, 
shows  that  it  is  the  only  possible  rule  for  civilized  society,  and 
must  be  strictly  adhered  to.  If  ignorance  of  the  law  were  once 
allowed  as  a  defence  it  would  of  course  be  pleaded  by  the  de- 
fendant in  all  cases,  and  in  most  cases  the  defendant  would  be 
able  to  prove  his  plea. 

It  is  with  the  object  of  helping  the  citizens  of  Massachusetts, 
and  especially  the  farmers,  to  know  a  small  part  of  what  they 
are  already  presumed  to  know  as  a  whole  that  this  little  book 
has  been  compiled.  It  contains  the  Massachusetts  laws  dealing 
with  agriculture  as  they  stood  at  the  prorogation  of  the  General 
Court  of  1916.  To  avoid  duplication,  however,  certain  statutes, 
though  more  or  less  closely  related  to  agriculture,  have  not 
been  included  as  they  have  been  published  in  other  compila- 
tions. Among  these  are  the  dairy  statutes  and  decisions,  pub- 
lished by  the  Dairy  Bureau  of  the  State  Board  of  Agriculture; 
the  "Forestry  Laws"*  and  those  relating  to  the  suppression  of 
the  gypsy  and  brown-tail  moth,  published  by  the  State  Forester; 
the  laws  relating  to  the  suppression  of  cattle  diseases,  compiled 
by  the  Department  of  Animal  Industry;  the  "Fish  and  Game 
Laws,"  issued  by  the  Board  of  Commissioners  on  Fisheries  and 
Game;  and  the  "Weights  and  Measures  Laws,"  issued  by  the 
Department  of  Weights  and  Measures.  On  account  of  the 
importance  of  the  deer,  pheasant  and  dog  laws,  in  their  relation 
to  the  farmer,  however,  these  have  been  included,  as  well  as  the 
sections  from  the  weights  and  measures  act,  fixing  the  weights 
of  farm  produce. 

On  account  of  the  arrangement  of  the  statutes  according  to 
subject  the  laws  are  not  in  chronological  or  numerical  order. 
A  particular  statute  of  a  certain  year  may  be  found  by  looking 
in  the  index  of  statutes,  on  page  173. 


Digests  of  the  most  important  decisions  of  the  '  Supreme 
Judicial  Court  on  the  agricultural  law  have  been  also  included  in 
the  book.  In  most  cases  the  reporter's  headnote  has  been  used, 
though  in  a  few  cases  it  has  seemed  better  to  use  an  extract  from 
the  decision  itself.  The  cases  are  indexed  by  both  name  and 
volume.  A  list  of  the  officials  charged  with  the  enforcement  of 
the  various  laws  relating  to  agriculture  has  also  been  included, 
and  will  be  found  on  page  169. — EDITOR. 


MANUAL 


AGRICULTURAL  LAWS 


MANUAL  OF  AGRICULTURAL  LAWS. 


I.    STATUTES  PROVIDING  STATE  AID. 

1.    STATE  BOARD  OF  AGRICULTURE. 

REVISED  LAWS,  CHAPTER- 89. 
State  Board  of  Agriculture,  how  constituted. 

SECTION  1  (as  amended  by  1902,  11 6,  §4,  and  G.  A.,  1916,  49,  §  1). 
The  governor,  ex  officio,  the  president  of  the  agricultural  col- 
lege, the  state  forester,  the  secretary  of  the  state  board  of 
agriculture,  the  commissioner  of  animal  industry,  one  person 
appointed  by  and  from  the  state  federation  of  county  leagues 
and  farm  bureaus,  one  person  appointed  by  and  from  the  Mas- 
sachusetts society  for  promoting  agriculture,  one  person  ap- 
pointed by  and  from  each  agricultural  society  which  receives 
an  annual  bounty  from  the  commonwealth,  and  three  other 
persons  appointed  by  the  governor,  with  the  advice  and  consent 
of  the  council,  shall  constitute  the  state  board  of  agriculture. 

1852,  142,  §1.  1866,  263,  §3.  1894,144. 

G.  S.  16,  §  1.  P.  S.  20,  §  1.  1  Op.  A.  G.  406  (see  page  140). 

Tenure,  Vacancies. 

SECTION  2  (as  superseded  by  G.  A.,  1915,  114}.  The  term  of 
office  of  the  present  members  of  the  board  shall  expire  on  the 
first  Tuesday  of  December  of  the  last  year  of  the  term  for  which 
they  were  appointed,  and  the  term  of  office  of  members  here- 
after appointed  shall  be  three  years,  and  one  third  of  the  mem- 
bers shall  retire  annually  on  the  first  Tuesday  of  December, 
except  that  appointments  to  fill  vacancies,  other  than  those 
which  occur  from  the  expiration  of  terms,  shall  be  made  in  the 
same  manner  as  original  appointments  for  the  residue  of  the 
unexpired  term. 

1852,  142,  §§  1,  2.  P.  S.  20,  §  2. 

G.  S.  16,  §  2.  1896,  254. 

Meetings;   Members  to  receive  no  Compensation. 

SECTION  3.  The  board  shall  meet  at  the  state  house  or  at 
the  agricultural  college  once  in  each  year.  No  member  shall 


• 


10 


receive  compensation,  but  his  personal  expenses  incurred  in  the 
performance  of  his  official  duties  shall  be  paid  by  the  common- 
wealth. 

1852,  142,  §  4.  '  1866,  263,  §  2. 

G.  S.  16,  §3.  P.  S.  20,  §3. 


Secretary  and  Clerks  and  their  Salaries. 

SECTION  4  (as  amended  by  1911,  186;  G.  A.,  1915,  250;  G.  A., 
1916,  46,  §  2).  •  The  board  may  appoint,  and  prescribe  the  duties 
of,  a  secretary,  who  shall  receive  an  annual  salary  of  three 
thousand  dollars,  and  who,  with  the  approval  of  the  board, 
may  employ  a  first  clerk  at  an  annual  salary  of  eighteen  hundred 
dollars,  and  may  annually  expend  for  other  clerical  service  a 
sum  not  exceeding  five  thousand  dollars.  The  secretary  may 
arrange  for  lectures  before  the  board,  and  may  issue  for  general 
distribution  such-  publications  as  he  considers  best  adapted  to 
promote  the  interests  of  agriculture;  but  the  expense  of  such 
lectures  and  publications,  unless  otherwise  provided  for,  shall 
be  paid  out  of  the  appropriation  for*the  dissemination  of  useful 
information  in  agriculture  by  the  board. 

1852,  142,  §  4.  1865,  243.  1881,  264.  1891,  300. 

Res.  1854,  72.  1867,  167,  §  4.  P.  S.  20,  §  4.  1892,  143. 

Res.  1859,  46.  1869,  96,  §  2.  1883,  184.  1893,  130. 

G.  S.  16,  §  4.  1877,  377,  §  9.  1884,  66.  1898,  459. 

1862,  164.  1879,  235.  1887,  245. 

General  Agent  of  Dairy  Bureau. 

SECTION  5  (as  amended  by  1905,  155;  1907,  401).  The  salary 
of  the  general  agent  of  the  dairy  bureau  of  the  state  board  of 
agriculture  shall  be  eighteen  hundred  dollars  a  year,  to  be  so 
allowed  from  the  first  day  of  January  in  the  year  nineteen  hun- 
dred and  seven. 

1891,  412,  §  6.  ,  1900,  368. 

Duties  of  Board. 

SECTION  6.  The  board  shall  investigate  subjects  relating 
to  improvement  in  agriculture,  and  may  take  and  hold  in  trust 
gifts  or  bequests  to  it  for  promoting  agricultural  education  or 
the  general  interests  of  husbandry. 

1852,  142,  §  3.  G.  S.  16,  §  5.  P.  S.  20,  §  6. 

Board  to  fix  Days  for  Annual  Meetings  of  Agricultural  Societies,  etc. 

SECTION  7.  It  may  fix  the  days  on  which  the  agricultural 
societies  shall  commence  their  exhibitions,  may  prescribe  forms 


11 

for  and  regulate  their  returns  and  shall  furnish  to  their  secre- 
taries the  necessary  blanks  to  secure  uniform  and  reliable  sta- 
tistics. The  secretary  of  the  board  shall,  in  each  year,  cause 
to  be  made  and  published  for  distribution  an  abstract  of  their 
returns. 

1847,  69,  §  4.          1853,  127,  §  2.  1866,  189,  §  3. 

1852,  142,  §  4.         G.  S.  16,  §§  6,  8.         P.  S.  20,  §§  7,  9. 

Reports  to  General  Court. 

SECTION  8  (a*  affected  by  1905,  211}.  The  board  shall  an- 
nually, on  or  before  the  third  Wednesday  of  January,  submit  to 
the  general  court  a  detailed  report  of  its  transactions,  with 
such  recommendations  and  suggestions  as  the  interests  of  agri- 
culture may  require. 

1852,  142,  §  4.  G.  S.  16,  §  7.  P.  S.  20,  §  10. 

Appointment  of  Agents. 

SECTION  9.  The  secretary  may  appoint  agents,  who  shall 
visit  the  towns  in  the  commonwealth  to  inquire  into  the  methods 
and  needs  of  practical  husbandry,  ascertain  the  adaptation  of 
agricultural  products  to  soil,  climate  and  markets,  encourage 
the  establishment  of  farmers'  clubs,  agricultural  libraries  and 
reading  rooms,  disseminate  useful  information  in  agriculture  by 
lectures  or  otherwise,  and  annually  in  October  make  detailed 
reports  to  him. 

1859,  203,  §  1.  G.  S.  16,  §  9.  P.  S.  20,  §  10. 

Board  of  Overseers  of  Agricultural  College. 

SECTION  10.  The  board  shall  be  a  board  of  overseers  of 
the  Massachusetts  agricultural  college,  with  powers  and  duties 
to  be  defined  by  the  governor  and  council,  but  such  powers  and 
duties  shall  not  control  the  action  of  the  trustees  of  said  college 
or  be  inconsistent  with  the  provisions  of  chapter  two  hundred 
and  twenty  of  the  acts  of  the  year  eighteen  hundred  and  sixty- 
three. 

1866,  263,  §  1.  P.  S.  20,  §  5. 


12 


DAIRY  BUREAU. l 
Dairy  Bureau;  Appointment,  Duties. 

.  SECTION  11  (as  amended  by  G.  A.,  1916,  46,  §  1).  The  dairy 
bureau  of  the  board  of  agriculture  shall  consist  of  three  members 
of  said  board,  one  of  whom  shall  annually,  before  the  first  day 
of  July,  be  appointed  by  the  governor,  with  the  advice  and  con- 
sent of  the  council,  for  a  term  of  three  years,  or  for  such  shorter 
term  as  he  may  continue  a  member  of  the  board.  The  governor 
may,  at  any  time,  terminate  the  service  of  any  member  of  said 
bureau,  and  thereupon,  or  upon  any  member  thereof  ceasing 
to  be  a  member  of  the  board,  he, may  appoint  another  member 
in  his  place.  Each  member  of  such  bureau  shall  receive  five 
dollars  for  each  day  of  actual  service  and  his  travelling  expenses, 
which  shall  be  paid  by  the  commonwealth  out  of  the  fund  pro- 
vided for  in  the  following  section.  The  bureau,  under  the  gen- 
eral direction  of  the  board  of  agriculture,  shall  inquire  into  the 
methods  of  making  butter  and  cheese  in  creameries  or  cheese 
factories,  investigate  all  dairy  products  and  imitation  dairy 
products  bought  or  sold  within  the  commonwealth,  enforce  the 
laws  for  the  manufacture,  transfer  and  sale  thereof,  and  shall 
take  such  action  as  will  tend  to  produce  a  better  quality  thereof 
and  improve  the  dairy  industry.  The  secretary  of  the  board 
of  agriculture  shall  be  the  executive  officer  and  secretary  of  the 
bureau,  subject  to  its  control  and  direction. 

1891,  412,  §§  7,  11.  1892,  139. 

Expenditures  authorized;  Annual  Report. 

SECTION  12  (as  amended  by  1908,  416,  §  1).  The  bureau  may 
expend  not  more  than  eight  thousand  dollars  annually  in  its 
work,  and  it  may  co-operate  with  the  state  board  of  health  and 
with  inspectors  of  milk,  but  it  shall  not  interfere  with  the  duties 
of  such  board  or  officers.  It  shall  annually,  before  the  fifteenth 
day  of  January,  report  to  the  general  court  in  detail  the  number 
of  agents,  assistants,  experts  and  chemists  employed  by  it,  with 
their  expenses  and  disbursements,  of  all  investigations  made  by 
it,  of  all  cases  prosecuted  with  the  results  thereof,  and  other 
information  advantageous  to  the  dairy  industry. 

1891,  412,  §§  8,  10.  1895,  214. 

1  For  complete  dairy  laws  and  decisions,  see  "Dairy  Laws,"  published  by  the  Dairy  Bureau 
of  the  State  Board  of  Agriculture. 


13 


Bureau  to  have  Access  to  Places  where  Dairy  Products  are  sold,  etc. ;   to 
prosecute  Violations  of  Law. 

SECTION  13.  The  bureau  and  its  agents  and  assistants  shall 
have  access  to  all  places  of  business,  factories,  buildings,  car- 
riages and  cars  used  in  the  manufacture,  transportation  or  sate 
of  dairy  products  or  imitations  thereof,  and  to  all  vessels  and 
cans  used  in  such  manufacture  and  sale,  and  shall  have  the 
authority  given  to  the  state  board  of  health  or  its  officers,  or  to 
inspectors  of  milk,  to  enforce  and  prosecute  violations  of  all 
laws  relating  to  dairy  products  or  imitations  thereof.  Whoever 
hinders,  obstructs  or  in  any  way  interferes  with  an  officer  or 
duly  authorized  agent  of  the  dairy  bureau  in  the  performance  of 
his  duty  shall  be  punished  by  a  fine  of  one  hundred  dollars  for 
the  first  offence  and  of  two  hundred  dollars  for  each  subse- 
quent offence,  which  shall  be  payable  into  the  treasury  of  the 
commonwealth. 

1891,  412,  §§9, 12.  1894,  280,  §  5. 


2.    AGRICULTURAL  AND  HORTICULTURAL  SOCIETIES. 

REVISED  LAWS,  CHAPTER  124. 

Bounty  from  State. 

SECTION  1  (a*  amended  by  1909,  183;  1912,  260;  1918, 
1914,  276).  Every  incorporated  agricultural  society  which  was 
entitled  to  bounty  from  this  commonwealth  before  the  thirty- 
first  day  of  December,  in  the  year  nineteen  hundred  and  thir- 
teen, and  every  other  such  society  whose  exhibition  grounds  and 
buildings  are  not  within  twenty-five  miles  of  those  of  a  society 
which  was  then  entitled  to  bounty,  and  which  has  raised  by 
contribution  of  individuals  and  holds,  as  a  capital  appropriated 
to  its  uses,  one  thousand  dollars,  invested  in  an  interest  bearing 
public  or  private  security  or  in  real  estate,  buildings  and  appur- 
tenances for  its  use  and  accommodation,  shall,  except  when 
otherwise  determined  by  the  state  board  of  agriculture  as  pro- 
vided in  section  four,  be  entitled  to  receive  annually  in  August 
from  the  commonwealth,  two  hundred  dollars,  and  in  that  pro- 
portion for  any  greater  amount  so  contributed  and  put  at  in- 
terest or  invested;  but  no  society  shall  receive  a  larger  amount 
in  one  year  than  it  has  awarded  and  paid  in  prepniums  during 
the  year  last  preceding,  or  otherwise  expended  for  the  encour- 
agement and  improvement  of  agriculture,  with  the  approval  of 
the  state  board  of  agriculture,  nor,  in  any  event,  more  than  six 


14 

hundred  dollars.  If  there  is  only  one  incorporated  agricultural 
society  in  any  county,  it  shall  be  entitled  to  receive  said  bounty 
notwithstanding  its  exhibition  grounds  and  buildings  are  within 
twenty-five  miles  of  a  society  entitled  to  said  bounty;  and, 
after  having  received  said  bounty,  it  shall  not  be  deprived  of 
the  right  to  receive  the  same  by  reason  of  the  subsequent  in- 
corporation of  another  society  within  the  same  county. 

1818,  114,  §§  1,  2.       1842,  31.        G.  S.  66,  §  1.        1870,  258. 
R.  S.  42,  §§  1,  2.        1852,  246.       1866,  189,  §  1.        1881,  285. 

ACTS  OF  1912,  260,  AS  AMENDED  BY   1914,  209. 
Bounties  for  Encouragement  of  Agriculture,  etc. 

Every  incorporated  agricultural  society  which  is  entitled  to 
receive  a  bounty  under  section  one  of  chapter  one  hundred  and 
twenty-four  of  the  Revised  Laws,  as  amended  by  chapter  one 
hundred  and  thirty-three  of  the  acts  of  the  year  nineteen  hun- 
dred and  nine,  shall  be  entitled  to  receive  annually  in  August 
from  the  commonwealth,  in  addition  to  the  sum  which  it  is  en- 
titled to  receive  under  the  said  section,  four  hundred  dollars 
for  the  following  purposes :  —  Two  hundred  dollars  to  be  dis- 
tributed in  premiums  to  children  and  youths  under  eighteen 
years  of  age  for  the  encouragement  of  horticulture,  agriculture 
and  domestic  manufactures,  subject  to  the  discretion  of  each 
society  drawing  bounty;  and  two  hundred  dollars  in  general 
premiums;  but  no  society  shall  receive  a  larger  sum  in  addi- 
tion to  the  bounty  to  which  it  is  entitled  under  the  said  sec- 
tion than  it  shall  have  expended  in  the  year  last  preceding  in 
premiums,  in  excess  of  the  sum  to  which  it  is  entitled  under  the 
said  section;  nor  in  the  case  of  the  sum  set  apart  in  this  act  for 
premiums  to  children  and  youths  a  larger  sum  than  it  shall  have 
expended  for  such  premiums. 

\  REVISED  LAWS,  CHAPTER  124. 
Bounty  to  Poultry  Associations. 

SECTION  2.1  The  state  board  of  agriculture  may  set  aside 
from  the  bounty  allowed  by  the  commonwealth  to  an  incor- 
porated agricultural  society  such  amount  as  may  be  recom- 
mended by  the  delegate  who  represents  such  society  on  said 
board,  and  it  shall  be  devoted  solely  to  the  premium  list  of  such 
chartered  poultry  association  as  said  delegate  may  recommend, 
and  upon  such  conditions  as  the  board  of  agriculture  may  deter- 
mine. 1895,  391. 

1  See  poultry  premium  bounty  bill,  page  21. 


15 


Societies  claiming  Bounty  to  file  Certificate. 

SECTION  3  (as  amended  by  1913,  213,  §  1).  A  society  which 
claims  bounty  shall  annually,  on  or  before  the  tenth  day  of 
December,  file  in  the  office  of  the  secretary  of  the  board  of 
agriculture,  a  certificate  signed  by  its  president  and  treasurer, 
stating  under  oath  the  amount  so  contributed  which  it  holds  at 
interest  or  invested,  as  a  capital  stock;  and  also  such  other 
returns  of  its  financial  affairs  as  the  board  of  agriculture  may 
require,  upon  a  blank  to  be  furnished  by  the  secretary  of  said 
board  to  the  treasurer  of  said  society. 

1814,  114,  §  3.   •      1847,  69,  §  1.        1853,  127,  §  1.        P.  S.  114,  §  2. 
R.  S.  42,  §  3.         1852,  142,  §  4.       G.  S.  66,  §  2.         1891,  124. 

Amount  of  Bounty.     State  Board  may  withhold  Same. 

SECTION  4.  The  amount  of  bounty  to  which  a  society  is 
entitled  for  any  year  shall  be  ascertained  by  the  certificate  last 
filed  by  it  under  the  provisions  of  the  preceding  section.  But  a 
society  shall  not  receive  bounty  in  any  year,  if  the  state  board 
of  agriculture,  having  first  given  to  it  full  opportunity  to  be 
heard  relative  to  its  financial  affairs  and  general  management, 
so  determines  by  a  two-thirds  vote  of  the  whole  number  of  its 
members  present  at  its  annual  meeting,  and  by  its  secretary 
notifies  the  treasurer  and  receiver  general  thereof  on  or  before 
the  first  day  of  September  in  such  year. 

1847,  69,  §  2.  G.  S.  66,  §  3.  1881,  285.  P.  S.  114,  §  3. 

Rules  for  Distribution  of  Bounty. 

SECTION  5.  A  society  which  receives  bounty  shall  make  such 
rules  for  the  distribution  thereof  as  shall,  in  its  opinion  best 
promote  the  improvement  of  agriculture;  subject,  however,  to 
the  restrictions  of  sections  eight  to  twelve,  inclusive. 

1865,  90.  P.  S.  114,  §  4. 

Sale  or  Mortgage  of  Property  regulated. 

SECTION  6  (as  amended  by  1907,  189).  A  society  which  has 
received  or  may  receive  a  bounty  from  the  commonwealth  shall 
not  sell  or  mortgage  the  whole  or  any  portion  of  its  real  estate 
unless  so  authorized  by  a  vote  of  tw9  thirds  of  those  members 
of  such  society  who  are  present  and  voting  at  a  meeting  called 
for  the  purpose,  approved  by  the  state  board  of  agriculture, 
after  notice  to  parties  interested  and  a  hearing. 

1890,  274. 


16 


Annual  Returns. 

SECTION  7  (as  amended  by  1913,  213,  §  2).  Every  such  society 
shall  annually,  on  or  before  the  tenth  day  of  December,  make  a 
full  return  of  its  doings,  signed  by  its  president  and  secretary, 
to  the  secretary  of  the  state  board  of  agriculture,  containing  a 
statement  of  all  expenditures,  of  the  nature  of  the  encourage- 
ment proposed  by  the  society,  the  objects  for  which  its  premiums 
have  been  offered  and  the  persons  to  whom  they  have  been 
awarded,  all  reports  of  committees  and  all  statements  of  ex- 
periments and  cultivation  which  are  regarded  by  the  president 
and  secretary  as  worthy  of  publication,  with  such  general  obser- 
vations relative  to  the  state  of  agriculture  and  manufactures 
in  the  commonwealth  as  it  may  consider  useful.  The  return 
shall  be  so  marked  that  the  passages  which  are  considered  by 
such  officers  most  worthy  of  public  notice,  study  and  applica- 
tion may  be  easily  distinguished. 

1818,  114,  §  4.         1847,  69,  §  1.          G.  S.  66,  §  5. 
R.  S.  42,  §  4.          1852,  142,  §  4.         187*,  182. 
1845,  111,  §  1.         1853,  127,  §  1.         P.  S.  114,  §  5. 

Forfeiture  of  Bounty. 

SECTION  8.  A  society  which  neglects  in  any  year  to  comply 
with  the  laws  relating  thereto  or  with  the  regulations  of  the 
state  board  of  agriculture  shall  not  be  entitled  to  bounty  in  the 
succeeding  year. 

1845,  111,  §  5.       1847,  69,  §  3.         1853,  127,  §  3.        P.  S.  114,  §  6. 
1856,  181,  §  2.       1859,  232,  §  5.        G.  S.  66,  §  6. 


Premiums  to  be  offered  by  Societies. 

SECTION  9.  A  society  which  receives  said  bounty  shall  offer 
annually  by  way  of  premiums,  or  shall  otherwise  apply,  for  the 
encouragement  or  improvement  of  agriculture  or  manufactures, 
an  amount  not  less  than  the  amount  so  annually  received,  and 
shall  offer  such  premiums  for  agricultural  experiments,  and  in 
such  manner,  as  the  state  board  of  agriculture  requires. 

1818,  114,  §  4.  R.  S.  42,  §  4.  G.  S.  66,  §  7.  P.  S.  11*.  §  7. 


Premiums  for  Trees  for  Ship  Timber. 

SECTION  10.  Every  such  society  shall  annually  offer  such 
premiums  and  encouragement  for  the  raising  and  preservation 
of  oaks  and  other  forest  trees  as  it  considers  proper  and  adapted 


17 

to  perpetuate  within  the  commonwealth  an  adequate  supply  of 
ship  and  other  timber. 

1818,  114,  §  5.  G.  S.  66,  §  8.  1901,  58. 

R.  S.  42,  §  6.  P.  S.  114,  §  8. 

Members. 

SECTION  11.  Every  such  society  shall  admit  as  members, 
upon  equal  terms,  citizens  of  every  town  in  the  county  in  which 
it  is  located,  and  all  premiums  offered  shall  be  subject  to  the 
competition  of  every  citizen  of  such  county. 

1861,  180,  §  1.  P.  S.  114,  §  9. 

Surplus  to  be  at  Interest. 

SECTION  12.  All  money  offered  for  premiums  which  is  not 
awarded  or  paid  ^hall  be  placed  at  interest  and  added  to  the 
capital  stock  of  the  society. 

1818, 114,  §  4.  R.  S.  42,  §  5.  G.  S.  66,  §  9. 

To  what  Societies  Provisions  apply. 

SECTION  13.  Sections  one,  three,  four,  five  and  seven  to 
twelve,  inclusive,  except  the  proviso  in  section  four  authorizing 
the  state  board  of  agriculture  to  withhold  bounty,  shall  not, 
except  by  special  enactment,  extend  to  an  agricultural  society 
incorporated  for  any  territory  less  than  a  county. 

1818,  114,  §  6.  G.  S.  66,  §  10.  P.  S.  114,  §  11. 

R.  S.  42,  §  7.  1881,  285. 

Cattle  Shows  regulated. 

SECTION  14.  The  officers  of  such  society  may  define  and  fix 
bounds  of  sufficient  extent  for  the  erection  of  its  cattle  pens  and 
yards  and  for  convenient  passage  ways  to  and  about  the  same 
on  the  days  of  its  cattle  shows  and  exhibitions,  and  also  for  its 
ploughing  matches  and  trials  of  working  oxen;  but  they  shall 
not  occupy  or  include  within  such  bounds  the  land  of  any  person 
without  his  consent,  nor  obstruct  travel  on  any  public  highway. 
No  person  shall  be  permitted  to  enter  or  pass  within  such  bounds 
unless  in  conformity  with  the  regulations  of  the  officers  of  the 
society.  Whoever,  contrary  to  such  regulations,  and  after 
notice  thereof,  enters  or  passes  within  the  bounds  so  fixed, 
shall  forfeit  not  more  than  five  dollars. 

1820,  49,  §  1.  1847,  69,  §  5.  P.  S.  114,  §§  12-14. 

R.  S.  42,  §§  8-10.  G.  S.  66,  §§  11-13. 

Commonwealth  v.  Ruggles,  6  Allen,  588  (see  page  168). 


18 


Powers  of  Marshals. 

SECTION  15.  The  officers  of  such  society  may  appoint  a 
sufficient  number  of  suitable-  inhabitants  of  the  county  to  act  as 
marshals  at  cattle  shows  and  exhibitions.  Such  marshals  shall 
have  the  powers  of  constables  in  relation  to  the  preservation 
of  the  public  peace  and  the  service  and  execution  of  criminal 
process  within  the  respective  towns  in  which  such  shows  and 
exhibitions  are  held,  and  such  process  may  be  directed  to  them 
accordingly;  and  they  shall  exercise  their  office  from  twelve 
o'clock  at  noon  of  the  day  preceding  the  commencement  of  such 
shows  and  exhibitions  until  twelve  o'clock  at  noon  of  the  day 
succeeding  the  termination  thereof,  and  no  longer. 

1820,  49,  §  2.  R.  S.  42,  §  11.  G.  S.  66,  §  14.  P.  S.  114,  §  15. 

Commonwealth  v.  Ruggles,  6  Allen,  588  (see  page  168). 

Assignment  of  Police  at  Exhibitions. 

SECTION  16.  Upon  the  application  of  the  president  of  an 
incorporated  agricultural  or  horticultural  society  to  the  au- 
thorities of  a  city  or  town  in  which  an  exhibition  of  such  society 
is  to  be  held,  said  city  or  town  authorities  shall  assign  for  special 
service  at  such  exhibition  as  many  police  officers  or  constables 
as  may  be  necessary  to  preserve  the  peace  and  enforce  the  law 
at  such  exhibition.  1892i  iso. 

Rules  for  ascertaining  Amount  of  Premium  Crops. 

SECTION  17.  The  state  board  of  agriculture  may  prescribe 
rules  to  societies  for  uniform  modes  of  ascertaining  the  product 
of  crops  entered  for  premium. 

1862,24.  P.  S.  114,  §16. 

Premiums  for  Experiments. 

SECTION  18.  Every  such  society  may  offer  and  pay  premiums 
for  experiments  in  the  cultivation  of  crops  or  in  the  raising  of 
domestic  animals  for  farm  purposes,  and  no  regulation  of  the 
state  board  of  agriculture  to  the  contrary  shall  be  valid. 

1859,  232,  §4.  1881,285.  P.  S.  114,  §17. 

Formation  of  a  Corporation.     Powers. 

SECTION  19.  Ten  or  more  persons  in  any  county,  city  or 
town,  who  by  agreement  in  writing  associate  for  the  purpose 
of  encouraging  agriculture  or  horticulture,  or  for  improving  and 


19 

ornamenting  the  streets  and  public  squares  of  any  city  or  town 
by  planting  and  cultivating  ornamental  trees  therein,  may  form 
a  corporation  under  the  provisions  of  chapter  one  hundred  and 
twenty-five,  and  may  hold  real  and  personal  estate  not  exceed- 
ing ten  thousand  dollars  in  value. 

1853,  312.  G.  S.  66,  §  17.  P.  S.  114,  §  18.  1897,  496,  §  8. 

t 

Farmers'  Clubs  to  receive  Publications,  etc. 

SECTION  20.  Farmers'  clubs  which  are  organized  and  are 
holding  regular  meetings  shall,  upon  application  made  annually 
in  November  to  the  secretary  of  the  state  board  of  agriculture, 
receive  copies  of  its  report  and  of  its  other  publications,  in  pro- 
portion to  the  number  of  their  members  and  to  the  applications 
so  made.  A  club  wtuch  receives  such  copies  shall  annually  in 
October  make  returns  to  said  secretary  of  its  agricultural  ex- 
periments and  of  the  reports  of  its  committees. 

1859,  203,  §  2.  G.  S.  66,  §  18.  P.  S.  114,  §  19. 

Preservation  of  Peace. 

SECTION  21.  Every  such  society  or  farmers'  club  may  estab- 
lish such  regulations,  not  inconsistent  with  law,  as  it  may  con- 
sider necessary  and  expedient  for  the  preservation  of  peace  and 
good  order  or  for  the  protection  of  its  interests  at  its  regular  or 
annual  meetings,  shows,  fairs  or  exhibitions,  and  shall  cause  at 
least  five  copies  of  such  regulations  to  be  posted  in  public  places 
on  its  grounds  not  less  than  forty-eight  hours  before  the  time 
of  holding  each  meeting. 

1861,  127,  §  1.  P.  S.  114, §  20. 

Commonwealth  v.  Ruggles,  6  Allen,  588  (see  page  168). 

Booths,  etc.,  Gaming,  etc.,  prohibited. 

SECTION  22.  No  person  shall,  during  the  time  of  holding  a 
cattle  show,  fair  or  exhibition  or  meeting  of  a  farmers'  club, 
without  the  consent  of  the  authorities  having  charge  of  the 
same,  establish  within  one-half  mile  of  the  place  of  holding 
such  show  or  meeting  a  tent,  booth  or  vehicle  of  any  kind  for 
the  purpose  of  vending  any  goods,  wares,  merchandise,  provi- 
sions or  refreshments.  No  person  shall  engage  in  gaming  or 
horse  racing  or  exhibit  a  show  or  play  during  the  regular  or 
stated  time  of  holding  a  cattle  show,  agricultural  fair  or  meeting 
of  a  farmers'  club,  or  engage  in  pool  selling,  at  or  within  half  a 


20 

mile  of  the  place  of  holding  the  same;  but  any  person  having  his 
regular  place  of  business  within  such  limits  shall  not  be  hereby 
required  to  suspend  his  business. 

1861,  127,  §  2.  1877,  149,  §  1.  P.  S.  114,  §  21. 

Penalty. 

SECTION  23.  Whoever  violates  any  provisions  of  the  pre- 
ceding section,  or  a  regulation  established  under  the  provisions 
of  section  twenty-one,  shall  forfeit  not  more  than  twenty  dollars 
for  such  offence. 

1861,  127,  §  3.  P.  S.. 114,  §  22. 


3.    STATE  ORNITHOLOGIST. 

ACTS  OF  1908,  CHAPTER  245. 
State  Ornithologist,  Appointment,  etc. 

SECTION  1.  The  state  board  of  agriculture  shall  annually 
appoint  some  person,  qualified  by  training  and  practical  experi- 
ence, to  be  state  ornithologist,  and  he  shall  be  responsible  to  the 
board  for  the  performance  of  his  duties  as  prescribed  in  this  act. 

Duties,  etc.;  Annual  Report. 

SECTION  2.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  state  ornithologist 
to  investigate  the  distribution  and  food  habits  of  the  birds  of 
the  commonwealth;  to  determine,  so  far  as  possible,  the  rela- 
tions of  birds  to  outbreaks  of  insects  and  other  animals;  to 
experiment  with  a  view  of  discovering  the  best  methods  of 
protecting  fruits  and  crops  from  birds;  and  to  serve  the  state 
board  of  agriculture  and  the  people  of  the  commonwealth  in  an 
advisory  capacity  in  matters  relating  to  the  economic  status  of 
birds  and  legislation  concerning  them.  He  shall  make  an  annual 
report  to  the  state  board  of  agriculture,  and  may  issue  special 
reports  and  bulletins  as  the  exigencies  of  his  work  may  require. 


Compensation,  Expenses,  etc. 

SECTION  3  (as  amended  by  1912,  500,  and  1914,  4% 4}-  The  state 
ornithologist  shall  receive  two  thousand  dollars  annually  for 
his  services,  and  such  allowance^  for  necessary  expenses,  traveling 
or  otherwise,  as  may  be  approved  by  the  said  board.  He  may 
purchase  such  supplies  and  apparatus  and  may  employ  such 


21 

assistance  as  may  be  reasonably  necessary  in  carrying  out  his 
duties,  subject  to  the  approval  of  the  said  board;  but  the  total 
amount  to  be  expended  under  authority  of  this  act  shall  not 
exceed  twenty-five  hundred  dollars  annually,  including  the  salary 
of  the  ornithologist. 


4.  ENCOURAGEMENT  OF  POULTRY  BREEDING. 

ACTS  OF  1909,  CHAPTER  428. 
Poultry  Premium  Bounties,  Distribution,  etc. 

SECTION  1  (as  superseded  by  1914,  298,  §  1).  The  sum  of 
two  thousand  dollars  shall  be  paid  annually  from  the  'treasury 
of  the  commonwealth  to  the  board  of  agriculture,  which  shall 
be  known  as  a  poultry  premium  bounty,  and  shall  be  used  by 
the  said  board  to  encourage  and  improve  the  breeding  of  poultry. 
Said  bounty  shall  be  distributed  by  said  board  among  the  poultry 
associations  hereinafter  designated,  during  the  month  of  August 
in  each  year,  in  proportion  to  the  total  amounts  paid  out  by  such 
associations,  respectively,  during  the  year  ending  June  thir- 
tieth, as  hereinafter  provided,  in  state  premiums  for  such  breeds 
and  strains  of  poultry  as  the  said  board  shall  consider  most 
worthy  of  encouragement,  and  the  sum  so  distributed  shall  be 
used  by  such  associations  for  the  purpose  of  enabling  them  to 
hold  annual  exhibitions  of  poultry  and  for  the  payment  of 
premiums  only.  The  board  may  make  such  rules  as  it  may 
deem  suitable  for  carrying  out  the  provisions  of  this  act;1  and 
any  part  of  said  bounty  not  distributed  by  the  board  in  any 
year  shall  be  repaid  by  it  to  the  treasurer  and  receiver  general. 

Association  not  to  receive  Bounty  unless,  etc. 

SECTION  2.  No  association  shall  be  entitled  to  any  part  of 
said  bounty  unless  it  shall  have  been  incorporated  under  the 
laws  of  the  commonwealth  for  the  purposes  principally  of  hold- 
ing exhibitions  of  poultry  within  the  commonwealth. 

Association  to  certify  to  Certain  Facts  under  Oath. 

SECTION  3  (as  superseded  by  1914,  %98,  §  2).  No  association 
shall  be  entitled  to  any  part  of  said  bounty  unless  it  shall  certify 
to  the  board  of  agriculture,  not  later  than  the  tenth  day  of 

1  The  rules  and  regulations  governing  the  distribution  of  poultry  bounty  may  be  secured 
by  addressing  State  Board  of  Agriculture,  136  State  House,  Boston. 


22 

July,  under  the  oath  of  the  president  and  treasurer  of  such  asso- 
ciation, that  it  has  held  an  exhibition  of  poultry  during  the 
year  ending  June  thirtieth,  the  amount  paid  in  premiums  by  the 
association  at  such  exhibition,  and  that  the  association  is  in  need 
of  aid  to  enable  it  to  continue  its  exhibitions  of  poultry,  together 
with  such  other  facts  as  the  board  may  request. 

Term  defined. 

SECTION  4  (added  by  1914,  298,  §  3).  For  the  purposes  of  this 
act  the  term  "state  premiums"  shall  mean  all  premiums  de- 
scribed in  the  premium  lists  of  said  associations  as  being  offered 
by  the  state  board  of  agriculture  through  the  association. 


5.    ENCOURAGEMENT  OF  AGRICULTURE  AMONG  CHILDREN 

AND  YOUTHS. 

ACTS  OF  1913,  CHAPTER  319,  AS  AMENDED  BY  ACTS  OF  1914,  CHAPTER  267. 
Premiums  for  Encouragement  of  Agriculture. 

SECTION  1.  A  sum  not  exceeding  two  thousand  dollars  may 
annually  be  expended  by  the  state  board  of  agriculture  in 
premiums  or  otherwise,  as  the  board  shall  determine,  as  rewards 
to  children  and  youths  under  eighteen  years  of  age  for  the  pur- 
pose of  stimulating  interest  and  activity  in  agriculture.  The 
board  shall  report  annually  to  the  legislature  the  names  of  the 
recipients  of  premiums  or  other  rewards  given  hereunder,  and 
the  amount  or  value  given  to  each. 


6.  ENCOURAGEMENT  OF  ORCHARDING. 

ACTS  OF  1910,  CHAPTER  427. 
Encouragement  of  Orcharding. 

SECTION  1.  There  shall  annually  be  allowed  and  paid  out 
of  the  treasury  of  the  commonwealth  the  sum  of  five  hundred 
dollars,  to  be  expended  by  the  state  board  of  agriculture  for 
prizes  for  the  best  experiments  in  orcharding  by  private  owners 
of  orchards  in  Massachusetts,  in  giving  demonstrations  of  spray- 
ing and  of  the  care  and  management  of  orchards,  or  in  such 
other  manner  as  the  board  may  deem  best  to  encourage  the 
orchard  industry  of  the  commonwealth. 


23 


7.    SPECIAL  EXHIBITIONS. 

ACTS  OF  1912,  CHAPTER  41L 
Encouragement  of  Agriculture. 

SECTION  1.  There  shall  annually  be  allowed  and  paid  out 
of  the  treasury  of  the  commonwealth  the  sum  of  two  thousand 
dollars,  to  be  expended  by  the  state  board  of  agriculture  in  the 
holding  of  special  exhibitions  of  the  products  of  special  lines  of 
agriculture,  such  as  fruit  growing,  and  corn  growing,  either  by 
the  board  or  by  other  organizations  acting  under  the  direction 
of  the  board  and  under  such  rules  and  regulations  as  the  board 
may  establish,  in  holding  demonstrations  of  the  best  methods  in 
agriculture,  in  payment  of  the  salaries  and  expenses  of  agents 
who  shall  instruct  the  citizens  of  the  commonwealth  in  the  best 
methods  of  agriculture,  in  payment  of  prizes,  or  in  such  other 
manner  as  the  board  may  deem  best  for  the  encouragement  of 
agriculture:  provided,  that  no  part  of  the  suni  hereby  appro- 
priated shall  be  paid  for  exhibitions  held  by  the  agricultural 
societies  receiving  bounty  from  the  commonwealth. 


24 


II.     STATUTES  PROVIDING  FOR  INSPECTION,  REGULATION 
AND   CONTROL. 

1.    NURSERY  INSPECTION. 

ACTS  OF  1912,  CHAPTER  507,  AS  AMENDED  BY  GENERAL  ACTS  OF  1915,  CHAPTER 
161,  AND  GENERAL  ACTS  OF  1916,  CHAPTER  91. 

State  Nursery  Inspector,  Appointment. 

SECTION  1.  The  state  board  of  agriculture  shall  annually 
appoint  a  person  qualified  by  scientific  training  and  practical 
experience  to  be  state  nursery  inspector,  and  he  shall  be  re- 
sponsible to  the  board  for  the  performance  of  his  duties  as 
prescribed  in  this  act.  The  said  inspector  may  appoint  such 
number  of  deputies,  subject  to  the  approval  of  the  secretary  of 
the  state  board  of  agriculture,  as  he  may  deem  necessary  or 
expedient. 

Duties  of  Nursery  Inspectors. 

SECTION  2.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  state  nursery  in- 
spector, either  personally  or  through  his  deputies,  to  inspect 
at  least  once  each  year  all  nurseries  or  places  in  the  state  where 
nursery  stock  is  grown,  and  if  no  dangerous  insects  or  fungous 
pests  are  found  therein,  a  certificate  to  that  effect  shall  be 
given  by  him.  If  such  pests  are  found  therein  the  owner  of  the 
stock  shall  take  such  measures  to  suppress  the  same  as  the  state 
nursery  inspector  shall  prescribe,  and  no  certificate  shall  be  given 
until  the  said  inspector  has  satisfied  himself  by  subsequent  in- 
spections that  all  such  pests  have  been  suppressed. 

Agent's  Licenses. 

SECTION  3.  Agents  or  other  persons,  excepting  growers,  who 
sell  nursery  stock  shall  make  application  to  the  state  nursery 
inspector  for  an  agent's  license,  and  shall  file  with  him  the 
names  and  addresses  of  all  persons  or  nurseries  from  which  they 
purchase  their  stock.  On  receipt  of  such  application,  the  state 
nursery  inspector  shall  issue  an  agent's  license,  valid  for  one 
year,  in  such  form  and  with  such  provisions  as  the  state  board 
of  agriculture  may  prescribe.  The  license  may  be  revoked  at 
any  time  for  failure  to  report  the  names  and  addresses  of  per- 
sons or  nurseries  from  which  stock  is  purchased,  or  for  such 
other  cause  as  may  be  deemed  sufficient  by  the  state  nursery 


25 

inspector  and  the  secretary  of  the  state  board  of  agriculture. 
All  persons  except  growers,  who  sell,  or  who  take  or  solicit 
orders  for  nursery  stock  shall  be  regarded  as  nursery  agents  for 
the  purposes  of  this  act. 

Sale,  etc.,  of  Nursery  Stock  regulated. 

SECTION  4.  It  shall  be  unlawful  for  any  person,  firm  or  cor- 
poration to  sell,  exchange,  give  away,  deliver  or  ship  within  the 
state  any  trees,  shrubs  or  plants  commonly  known  as  nursery 
stock  unless  such  person,  firm  or  corporation  holds  a  grower's 
certificate  or  an  agent's  license,  given  under  authority  of  this  or 
of  some  preceding  act,  and  unless  a  copy  of  such  certificate  or 
license,  or  such  other  evidence  as  the  state  board  of  agriculture 
may  prescribe,  shall  accompany  each  car,  box,  bundle  or  package 
sold,  exchanged,  given  away,  delivered  or  shipped,  and  unless 
such  certificate  or  license  is  dated  within  twelve  months  of  the 
date  of  delivery  or  shipment;  but  this  section  shall  not  be  taken 
to  prohibit  the  selling,  giving  or  exchanging  of  trees,  plants  or 
shrubs  by  persons  who  are  not  growers  of  or  dealers  in  nursery 
stock. 

Transportation  of  Nursery  Stock,  etc. 

SECTION  5.  Every  person,  firm,  corporation,  transportation 
company  or  common  carrier,  bringing  into  the  state,  or  receiving 
for  transportation  to  a  point  within  the  state  from  outside 
thereof,  any  car,  box,  bundle,  package  or  consignment  in  any 
form,  of  living  trees,  shrubs  or  plants  commonly  known  as 
nursery  stock,  shall  immediately  notify  the  state  nursery  in- 
spector of  the  fact  that  such  consignments  have  been  received 
by  him  or  it  and  give  the  name  and  address  of  the  consignee 
in  each  case,  together  with  such  further  report  as  may  be  re- 
quired by  the  state  nursery  inspector  under  other  provisions  of 
this  act.  Failure  on  the  part  of  any  person,  firm,  corporation, 
transportation  company  or  common  carrier  to  conform  to  these 
requirements  shall  be  deemed  a  misdemeanor,  and  shall  be  pun- 
ishable by  a  fine  as  prescribed  in  section  ten  of  this  act. 

Powers  of  State  Nursery  Inspector,  etc. 

SECTION  6.  The  state  nursery  inspector,  either  personally 
or  through  his  deputies,  shall  have  power  to  inspect  at  its  point 
of  destination  all  nursery  stock  coming  into  the  state,  and 
should  such  stock  be  found  to  be  infested  with  injurious  insects 


26 

or  plant  diseases  he  may  cause  it  to  be  destroyed,  or  treated  or 
returned  to  the  consignor  at  the  consignor's  expense.  The  state 
nursery  inspector,  either  personally  or  through  his  deputies, 
shall  also  have  power  to  inspect  all  fruits  brought  into  the  state 
from  any  other  state,  province  or  country,  grown  on  plants, 
shrubs  or  trees  of  kinds  which  also  grow  out  of  doors  in  this 
state,  and,  should  such  fruits  be  found  to  be  infested  with  in- 
jurious insects  or  plant  diseases  liable  to  establish  themselves 
in  this  state,  he  may  cause  such  fruits  to  be  destroyed,  or  treated 
or  returned  to  the  consignor  at  the  consignor's  expense. 


Inspection,  etc. 

SECTION  7.  The  state  nursery  inspector,  either  personally  or 
through  his  deputies,  may  inspect  any  orchard,  field,  garden, 
roadside  or  other  place  where  trees,  shrubs  or  other  plants  are 
growing  out  of  doors,  either  on  public  or  private  land,  which 
he  may  know  or  have  reason  to  suspect  is  infested  with  the  San 
Jose  scale  or  any  serious  insect  pest  or  plant  disease,  when  in 
his  judgment  such  pests  or  diseases  are  liable  to  cause  financial 
loss  to  adjoining  owners;  and  may  serve  written  notice  upon  the 
owner,  or  owners,  occupant  or  person  in  charge  of  trees,  shrubs 
or  other  plants  thus  infested,  of  the  presence  of  such  pests  or 
plant  diseases,  with  a  statement  that  they  constitute  a  public 
nuisance,  together  with  directions  to  abate  the  same,  giving  the 
methods  of  treatment  for  the  abatement  thereof,  and  stating 
a  time  within  which  the  nuisance  must  be  abated  in  accordance 
with  the  methods  given  in  the  notice.  If  the  person  or  persons 
so  notified  shall  refuse  or  neglect  so  to  treat  or  destroy  such 
trees,  shrubs  or  other  plants  within  the  time  prescribed,  the 
state  nursery  inspector  may  cause  such  property  to  be  so  treated, 
or  destroyed,  and  may  employ  all  necessary  assistants  for  this 
purpose,  and  such  assistants  shall  have  the  right  to  enter  upon 
any  public  or  private  property,  if  such  entry  is  necessary  for 
this  purpose.  Upon  the  completion  of  said  treatment  the  state 
nursery  inspector  shall  certify  in  writing  to  the  owner  or  person 
in  charge  of  the  treated  property  the  amount  of  the  cost  of  such 
treatment,  and  if  this  be  not  paid  to  the  secretary  of  the  state 
board  of  agriculture  within  ninety  days  thereafter,  the  same  may 
be  recovered  by  suit,  together  with  the  costs  of  suit. 


27 


Appeal  may  be  taken,  etc. 

SECTION  8.  In  case  of  objection  to  the  action  of  the  state 
nursery  inspector  or  his  deputy  in  executing  any  provision  of 
this  act,  an  appeal  may  be  taken  within  ten  days  to  the  secre- 
tary of  the  state  board  of  agriculture,  and  the  appeal  shall 
act  as  a  stay  of  proceedings  until  it  has  been  heard  and  decided 
by  the  secretary  of  the  state  board  of  agriculture,  whose  decision 
shall  be  final. 

Powers  of  the  Secretary  of  the  State  Board  of  Agriculture. 
SECTION  9.  When  the  secretary  of  the  state  board  of  agri- 
culture has  heard  an  appeal  and  has  rendered  a  decision  that  the 
action  of  the  state  nursery  inspector  from  which  the  appeal  was 
taken  is  sustained,  the  state  nursery  inspector  shall  notify  in 
writing  the  owner  or  owners,  occupant  or  person  in  charge  of  the 
trees,  shrubs,  or  other  plants  concerned,  of  the  decision  of  the 
secretary,  and  shall  direct  him  or  them  within  a  given  time  to 
treat  or  destroy  the  trees,  shrubs  or  other  plants  in  accordance 
with  a  method  prescribed  in  the  notice.  If  the  person  or  persons 
so  notified  shall  refuse  or  neglect  so  to  treat  or  destroy  such 
trees,  shrubs  or  other  plants  within  the  time  prescribed,  the 
state  nursery  inspector  may  cause  such  property  to  be  so*  treated, 
or  destroyed,  and  the  cost  of  the  treatment  to  be  collected  as 
provided  in  section  seven  of  this  act. 

Penalty. 

SECTION  10.  Any  person,  firm  or  corporation  violating  any 
provision  of  this  act  or  offering  any  hindrance  to  the  carrying 
out  of  any  part  thereof,  shall  be  punished  by  a  fine  of  not  less 
than  ten  nor  more  than  one  hundred  dollars  for  each  offence. 

Prosecutions,  etc. 

SECTION  11.  All  prosecutions  under  the  provisions  of  this  act 
shall  be  instituted  by  the  secretary  of  the  state  board  of  agri- 
culture and  shall  be  directed  by  him,  and  all  penalties  and  costs 
recovered  for  the  violation  of  any  provisions  of  this  act  shall 
be  paid  to  the  secretary  of  the  state  board  of  agriculture,  and  by 
him  immediately  paid  into  the  state  treasury,  to  be  kept  as  a 
fund  for  the  use  of  the  state  nursery  inspector  in  the  enforce- 
ment of  this  act  and  as  an  addition  to  the  appropriation  pro- 
vided for  in  this  act,  to  be  drawn  from  the  treasury  in  the  same 
manner  as  said  appropriation. 


28 


Powers  of  State  Nursery  Inspector. 

SECTION  12.  The  state  nursery  inspector,  with  the  approval 
of  the  secretary  of  the  state  board  of  agriculture,  may  prohibit 
for  such  periods  and  under  such  conditions  as  in  his  judgment 
may  seem  necessary,  the  delivery  within  the  state  of  nursery 
stock  from  any  other  state,  province  or  country  when  in  his 
opinion  such  nursery  stock  is  liable  to  be  infested  with  insect 
pests  or  diseases  not  already  present  in  this  state.  He,  with 
the  approval  of  the  secretary  of  the  state  board  of  agriculture, 
shall  have  power  to  prescribe  such  general  requirements  as  may 
be  needed  to  carry  out  the  provisions  of  this  act,  and  may 
publish  information  about  such  insects  and  diseases  as  are  con- 
cerned in  this  act. 

Not  to  apply  in  Certain  Cases. 

SECTION  13.  No  provision  of  this  act  shall  be  considered  as 
applying  to  the  gypsy  or  brown  tail  moths  or  any  stage  thereof 
except  upon  places  where  nursery  stock  is  grown  and  upon 
property  immediately  adjoining  the  same. 

t  Season  for  Inspection. 

SECTION  14.  The  state  nursery  inspector  shall  determine  the 
season  for  inspecting  nurseries  and  the  forms  of  certificates  to 
be  given,  but  in  no  case  shall  he  issue  a  certificate  which  shall 
continue  in  force  after  the  first  day  of  July  next  following  the 
date  of  inspection.  He,  or  any  of  his  deputies,  shall  at  all  times 
have  the  right  to  enter  any  public  or  private  grounds  in  the 
performance  of  any  duty  required  by  this  act.  The  state  nursery 
inspector  shall  receive  five  hundred  dollars  annually  for  his 
services  under  this  act  and  his  travelling  and  other  expenses 
necessarily  incurred  in  his  service  hereunder.  Each  of  his 
deputies  shall  receive  a  sum  to  be  fixed  by  the  state  nursery 
inspector  with  the  approval  of  the  secretary  of  the  state  board 
of  agriculture,  but  which  in  no  case  shall  exceed  five  dollars  for 
each  day's  service  required  of  him  under  this  act,  and  his  travel- 
ling and  other  expenses  necessarily  incurred  in  such  service. 

Expenditure. 

SECTION  15.  A  sum  not  exceeding  fifteen  thousand  dollars 
may  be  expended  by  the  state  board  of  agriculture  in  carrying 
out  the  provisions  of  this  act. 


29 


Repeal. 

SECTION  16.  Chapter  four  hundred  and  forty-four  of  the  acts 
of  the  year  nineteen  hundred  and  nine,  and  all  other  acts  or 
parts  of  acts  inconsistent  herewith  are  hereby  repealed;  but  this 
repeal  shall  not  affect  any  act  done  or  proceeding  begun  under 
any  act  hereby  repealed. 

Time  of  taking  Effect. 

SECTION  17.  This  act  shall  take  effect  on  the  first  day  of 
December,  nineteen  hundred  and  twelve. 

Notification  of  Fruit  Importations. 

SECTION  18.  Every  person,  firm  or  corporation,  except  com- 
mon carriers,  who  shall  receive,  bring  or  cause  to  be  brought  into 
the  state  from  such  states,  provinces  or  countries  as  may  be 
designated  by  the  secretary  of  the  state  board  of  agriculture, 
any  fruits  grown  on  plants,  shrubs  or  trees  of  kinds  which  also 
grow  out  of  doors  in  this  state,  shall  immediately  after  the 
arrival  thereof  notify  the  state  nursery  inspector  of  such  arrival 
and  hold  the  same  until  they  have  duly  been  inspected. 


2.    APIARY  INSPECTION. 

ACTS  OF  1911,  CHAPTER  220. 
Inspector  of  Apiaries,  Appointment. 

SECTION  1  (as  amended  by  G.  A.,  1916,  45  §  !)•  The  state  board 
of  agriculture  shall  annually  appoint  some  person  qualified  by 
scientific  training  and  practical  experience  in  bee  keeping  to  be 
state  inspector  of  apiaries,  who  shall  be  responsible  to  said 
board  for  the  performance  of  his  duties  under  this  act,  and  may 
be  removed  from  office  by  said  board  for  neglect  of  duty  or 
malfeasance  in  office.  The  inspector  of  apiaries,  with  the  ap- 
proval of  the  said  board,  may  appoint  such  deputies  as  he  may 
deem  necessary.  The  inspector  shall  receive  five  hundred  dollars 
annually  for  his  services  under  this  act,  and  his  travelling  and 
other  necessary  expenses,  and  may  expend  for  office  assistance 
such  amount  as  may  be  necessary.  Each  of  his  deputies  shall 
receive  a  sum  not  exceeding  five  dollars  for  each  day  of  service, 
to  be  fixed  by  the  inspector  of  apiaries  with  the  approval  of  the 
said  board,  and  his  travelling  and  other  necessary  expenses. 


30 


Duties  of  the  Inspector,  etc. 

SECTION  2.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  inspector  of  apiaries 
to  prepare  and  distribute  from  time  to  time  such  literature 
upon  the  subject  of  bee  culture,  with  the  approval  of  the  state 
board  of  agriculture,  as  may  be  deemed  advisable.  He  shall  also 
annually  make  or  cause  to  be  made  through  his  deputies  such 
inspection  of  the  apiaries  throughout  the  state  as  may  be 
deemed  necessary  to  discover  and  suppress  all  bee  diseases  of  a 
contagious  nature,  and  he  shall  have  authority,  with  the  ap- 
proval of  said  board,  to  make  and  issue  reasonable  regulations 
for  carrying  out  the  provisions  of  this  act. 

Keeping  of  Bees  prohibited  in  Certain  Cases. 

SECTION  3.  No  person  shall  keep  a  colony  of  bees  affected 
with  the  disease  known  as  foul  brood,  black  brood,  or  with  any 
other  infectious  or  contagious  disease  harmful  to  honey  bees  in 
the  egg,  larval,  pupal  or  adult  stage,  except  as  provided  by 
section  four  of  this  act;  and  every  bee  keeper,  when  he  becomes 
aware  of  the  existence  of  such  a  disease  among  his  bees,  shall  at 
once  notify  the  inspector  of  apiaries  of  the  existence  of  the  same. 
Any  person  who,  knowing  that  a  contagious  or  infectious  disease 
exists  among  his  bees,  sells,  barters  or  gives  away,  or  in  any 
other  way  disposes  of  the  same  in  whole  or  in  part,  or  any 
product  of  the  same,  or  any  hive,  super,  frame,  section  or  other 
appliance  used  about  the  diseased  bees,  in  such  manner  as  to 
cause  the  spread  of  the  disease,  shall,  upon  conviction  before  a 
court  or  justice,  be  liable  to  the  penalties  named  in  section  nine 
of  this  act. 

Diseased  Bees  to  be  held  in  Quarantine. 

SECTION  4.  The  inspector  of  apiaries  shall,  upon  the  dis- 
covery of  foul  brood,  black  brood  or  other  infectious  or  con- 
tagious disease,  send  to  the  owner  of  the  diseased  bees  an  order 
in  writing  that  such  bees  shall  be  held  in  quarantine  until  such 
time  as  the  same  are  released  by  a  written  permit  from  the 
inspector  of  apiaries,  and  bees  so  placed  in  quarantine  shall  not 
be  removed  from  the  premises  of  the  owner  under  the  penalties 
named  in  section  nine  of  this  act. 


31 


Instructions  in  Treatment  of  Diseased  Bees. 

SECTION  5.  Upon  the  discovery  of  a  case  of  foul  brood, 
black  brood,  or  other  infectious  or  contagious  disease  in  any 
apiary 'or  colony,  the  inspector  of  apiaries  or  his  deputies  shall 
give  such  instructions  to  the  owner  or  caretaker  thereof  as  to  the 
treatment  of  the  diseased  colonies  as  may  be  necessary.  If 
upon  subsequent  inspection  the  disease  is  still  found  to  exist 
in  tl^e  apiary  or  colony,  the  inspector  of  apiaries  or  his  deputies 
may  cause  the  diseased  colonies  to  be  destroyed  in  such  manner 
as  to  prevent  the  spread  of  the  disease. 


Regulations  concerning  Shipping  or  Transportation  of  Bees. 

SECTION  6.  No  colony  of  bees  shall  be  shipped  or  trans- 
ported into  the  state  for  delivery  to  any  consignee  residing  within 
the  state  from  any  state  or  foreign  country  having  an  inspector 
of  apiaries  or  other  officer  charged  with  the  duties  commonly 
performed  by  an  inspector  of  apiaries,  unless  said  colony  be 
accompanied  by  a  certificate  in  writing  from  such  officer,  stating 
that  he  has  inspected  said  colony  and  that  it  is  free  from  in- 
fectious or  contagious  diseases.  Whenever  a  colony  of  bees  shall 
be  shipped  or  transported  into  the  state  from  any  state  or 
foreign  country  not  having  an  inspector  of  apiaries  or  other 
officer  charged  with  the  duties  commonly  performed  by  an  in- 
spector of  apiaries,  the  consignee  shall,  upon  the  receipt  of 
said  colony,  forthwith  notify  the  state  inspector  of  apiaries  of  its 
receipt  and  the  state  inspector  of  apiaries  shall  forthwith  in- 
spect the  same.  No  transportation  company  or  common  carrier 
shall  accept  for  transportation  into  the  state  or  shall  deliver 
any  colony  of  bees  from  a  state  or  foreign  country  having  an 
inspector  of  apiaries,  or  other  officer  charged  with  the  duties 
commonly  performed  by  an  inspector  of  apiaries,  to  any  consignee 
residing  within  the  state,  unless  such  colony  is  accompanied 
by  a  certificate  of  inspection  as  heretofore  provided.  No  com- 
mon carrier  shall  be  liable  for  damages  to  the  consignee  or  con- 
signor for  refusing  to  receive,  transport  or  deliver  such  a  colony 
when  not  accompanied  by  a  certificate  of  inspection  as  above 
provided.  Nothing  in  this  section  shall  be  construed  to  prevent 
the  transportation  or  delivery  of  queeri  bees  when  not  accom- 
panied by  brood  or  comb. 


32 


Inspector  to  have  Access  to  Places  where'  Bees  are  kept. 

SECTION  7.  For  the  purpose  of  enforcing  this  act  the  in- 
spector of  apiaries  or  his  deputies  shall  have  access,  ingress  and 
egress  to  and  from  all  places  where  bees,  bee  products  or  supplies 
or  appliances  used  in  apiaries  are  kept. 

Record  to  be  kept  of  Apiaries  visited. 

SECTION  8.  The  inspector  of  apiaries  shall  keep  a  detailed 
record  of  the  number  and  location  of  all  apiaries  visited  by  him 
or  his  deputies,  the  number  and  location  of  all  colonies  found 
diseased  and  the  treatment  thereof,  and  the  expenditure  incurred 
in  the  performance  of  his  duties.  He  shall  report  to  the  state 
board  of  agriculture  annually,  and  at  such  other  times  as  the 
board  may  request,  and  his  annual  report  shall  be  published  in 
the  annual  report  of  the  state  board  of  agriculture. 

Penalties. 

SECTION  9.  Any  person  convicted  of  the  violation  of  any  pro- 
vision of  this  act  shall  be  subject  to  a  fine  not  exceeding  ten  dol- 
lars for  the  first  offence,'  to  a  fine  not  exceeding  twenty-five 
dollars  for  the  second  offence,  and  to  a  fine  not  exceeding  fifty 
dollars  for  any  subsequent  offence. 

Expenditures. 

SECTION  10.  A  sum  not  exceeding  two  thousand  dollars  may 
annually  be  expended  by  the  state  board  of  agriculture  in  carry- 
ing out  the  provisions  of  this  act. 


3.    COMMERCIAL  FERTILIZERS. 


ACTS  OF  1911,  CHAPTER  388. 
Sale  of  Commercial  Fertilizers. 

SECTION  1.  No  commercial  fertilizer  shall  be  sold  or  offered 
or  exposed  for  sale  in  this  commonwealth  without  a  plainly 
printed  label  accompanying  it,  displayed  in  the  manner  herein- 
after set  forth,  and  truly  stating  the  following  particulars :  - 

1.  The  number  of  pounds  of  the  fertilizer  sold  or  offered  or 
exposed  for  sale. 

2.  The  name,  brand  or  trade-mark  under  which  the  fertilizer 
is  sold,  and,  in  the  case  of  agricultural  lime,  its  particular  form. 


33 

3.  The    name    and    principal    address    of    the    manufacturer, 
importer  or  other  person  putting  the  fertilizer  on  the  market  in 
this  commonwealth. 

4.  The   minimum   percentage   of   each   of   the   following   con- 
stituents which  the  fertilizer  may  contain :  (a)  nitrogen,  (6)  phos- 
phoric  acid  soluble  in   distilled  water,    (c)  available  phosphoric 
acid,    (d)  total   phosphoric   acid,    (e)  potash  soluble   in   distilled 
water;    except  that  in  the  case  of  undissolved  bone,  untreated 
phosphate  rock,  tankage,  pulverized  natural  manures,  the  ground 
seeds  of  plants,  and  wood  ashes,  when  sold  unmixed  with  other 
substances,   the    minimum  percentage  of    total    phosphoric  acid 
therein   may  be  stated  in  place  of   the  percentages  of   soluble 
and  available  phosphoric  acid;    and  except  that  in  the  case  of 
agricultural  lime  the  label  shall  truly  state  the  following:    (a) 
minimum  and  maximum  percentage  of  total  lime,  (6)  minimum 
and  maximum  percentage  of  total  magnesia,   (c)  minimum  per- 
centage of  lime  and  magnesia  combined  as  carbonates,  (d)  min- 
imum percentage  of  lime  sulphate  in  gypsum  or  land  plaster. 

5.  If   any   part  of   the   nitrogen   contained  in  the  fertilizer  is 
derived  from   pulverized  leather,   raw,   roasted  or  steamed;    or 
from  untreated  hair,  wool  waste,  peat,  garbage  tankage,  or  from 
any  inert  material  whatsoever,   the  label   shall  truly  state  the 
specific  material  or  materials  from  which  such  part  of  the  nitro- 
gen is  derived. 

Label  to  be  affixed. 

SECTION  2.  When  any  fertilizer  is  sold  or  offered  or  exposed 
for  sale  in  packages,  the  label  shall  be  affixed  in  a  conspicuous 
place  on  the  outside  thereof.  When  any  fertilizer,  other  than 
the  product  of  gas-houses,  known  as  gas-house  lime,  is  offered 
or  exposed  for  sale  in  bulk  the  label  shall  be  affixed  in  a  con- 
spicuous place  to  the  bin  or  other  enclosure  in  which  the  fertilizer 
is  contained  but  need  not  state  the  number  of  pounds  thereof. 
And  when  any  fertilizer  other  than  gas-house  lime  aforesaid  is 
sold  in  bulk,  the  label  shall  be  affixed  in  a  conspicuous  place  to 
the  car  or  other  vehicle  in  which  the  fertilizer  is  shipped  or 
delivered  and  shall  state  the  number  of  pounds  thereof.  When 
any  fertilizer  is  sold  in  packages  furnished  by  the  purchaser  the 
seller  shall  furnish  the  labels  therefor. 


34 


Provisions  of  Label. 

SECTION  3.  The  provisions  of  the  printed  label  required 
by  this  act  relating  to  the  constituents  contained  in  any  fertilizer 
shall  be  known  and  recognized  as  the  guaranteed  analysis  of  such 
fertilizer,  and  the  available  phosphoric  adid  in  basic  phosphatic 
slag  shall  be  stated  in  the  label  thereof  on  the  basis  of  the  results 
of  an  analysis  by  the  Wagner  Method,  so-called,  until  such 
time  as  the  Association  of  Official  Agricultural  Chemists  of 
North  America  shall  adopt  a  method  of  analysis  for  basic  phos- 
phatic slag,  after  which  the  available  phosphoric  acid  shall  be 
stated  on  the  basis  of  an  analysis  by  the  method  of  said  asso- 
ciation. 

Violation  of  Act. 

SECTION  4.  Any  manufacturer,  importer,  or  other  person 
selling  or  offering  or  exposing  for  sale  in  this  commonwealth 
a  commercial  fertilizer  or  brand  of  commercial  fertilizer,  any 
constituent  part  of  which  is  of  a  smaller  percentage  than  it  is 
stated  to  be  in  the  label  of  said  fertilizer,  and  any  manufacturer, 
importer,  or  other  person  selling  or  offering  or  exposing  for  sale 
in  this  commonwealth  a  fertilizer  or  brand  of  fertilizer  with  a 
label  which  is  untrue  in  any  particular,  shall  be  deemed  to  have 
committed  a  violation  of  this  act. 

True  Copy  of  Label  to  be  filed. 

SECTION  5.  No  manufacturer,  importer,  or  other  person  shall 
sell  or  offer  or  expose  for  sale  in  this  commonwealth  any  com- 
mercial fertilizer  until  he  shall  have  filed  with  the  director  of 
the  Massachusetts  Agricultural  Experiment  Station  a  copy 
certified  by  him  to  be  a  true  copy  of  the  label  required  by  this 
act,  excepting  the  item  as  to  the  number  of  pounds,  for  every 
brand  of  fertilizer  to  be  sold  or  offered  or  exposed  for  sale  in  this 
commonwealth,  and  shall  have  paid  to  the  said  director  an 
annual  analysis  fee  for  every  brand  aforesaid  as  follows:  eight 
dollars  for  nitrogen,  eight  dollars  for  phosphoric  acid,  eight  dol- 
lars for  potash  contained  or  stated  to  be  contained  in  any  such 
brand  of  fertilizer,  and  twelve  dollars  for  every  brand  of  agri- 
cultural lime  except  gas-house  lime.  The  certified  copy  of  the 
label  of  every  brand  of  fertilizer  to  be  sold  or  offered  or  exposed 
for  sale  in  this  commonwealth  shall  be  filed  with,  and  the  proper 
analysis  fee  for  every  such  brand  shall  be  paid  to,  the  director 
of  the  Massachusetts  Agricultural  Experiment  Station  prior  to 


35 

the  first  day  of  January  of  the  calendar  year  in  which  the  brand 
is  to  be  sold  or  offered  or  exposed  for  sale.  But  should  a  manu- 
facturer, importer,  or  other  person  desire  in  any  year  to  sell  or 
to  offer  or  expose  for  sale  in  this  commonwealth  any  brand  of 
commercial  fertilizer  in  respect  of  which  the  requirements  of 
this  section  as  to  the  filing  of  a  copy  of  the  label  thereof  and  the 
payment  of  the  analysis  fee  therefor  have  not  been  complied 
with  before  the  first  day  of  January  of  said  year,  the  said  manu- 
facturer, importer  or  other  person  may  offer  or  expose  for  sale 
and  sell  the  said  brand  in  this  commonwealth  upon  filing  a  certi- 
fied copy  as  aforesaid  of  the  label  thereof  and  paying  the  full 
analysis  fee  therefor.  No  agent  or  other  person  shall  be  obliged 
to  file  a  copy  of  the  label  of,  or  pay  an  analysis  fee  for,  any 
brand  of  fertilizer  for  which  a  certified  copy  of  the  label  has 
been  filed  and  the  analysis  fee  has  been  paid  by  the  manu- 
facturer or  importer  of  such  brand. 

Any  manufacturer,  importer,  or  other  person  filing  with  the 
director  of  the  Massachusetts  Agricultural  Experiment  Station  a 
false  copy  of  the  printed  label  of  any  fertilizer  or  brand  of  fer- 
tilizer shall  be  deemed  to  have  committed  a  violation  of  this 
act. 

Certificate  of  filing  Label. 

SECTION  6.  When  both  the  certified  copy  of  the  label  of  any 
brand  of  fertilizer  has  been  filed  and  the  analysis  fee  therefor  has 
been  paid  as  provided  in  section  five  of  this  act,  the  director  of 
the  Massachusetts  Agricultural  Experiment  Station  shall  issue 
or  cause  to  be  issued  a  certificate  to  that  effect;  and  the  cer- 
tificate shall  be  deemed  to  authorize  the  sale  in  this  common- 
wealth, in  compliance  with  this  act,  of  the  brand  of  fertilizer 
for  which  the  certificate  is  issued,  up  to  and  including  the  thirty- 
first  day  of  December  of  the  year  for  which  it  is  issued. 

Analysis. 

SECTION  7.  Every  commercial  fertilizer  and  brand  of  com- 
mercial fertilizer  sold  or  offered  or  exposed  for  sale  in  this  com- 
monwealth shall  be  subject  to  analysis  by  the  director  of  the 
Massachusetts  Agricultural  Experiment  Station  or  by  his  duly 
designated  deputy  or  deputies.  And  the  said  director  is  hereby 
authorized  and  it  is  made  his  duty  to  make  or  cause  to  be  made 
in  each  year  one  or  more  analyses  of  every  fertilizer  and  brand 
of  fertilizer  sold  or  offered  or  exposed  for  sale  in  this  common- 


36 

wealth,  and  to  collect  the  annual  analysis  fee  provided  for  by 
section  five  of  this  act.  The  said  director,  his  inspectors  and 
deputies,  are  further  authorized  to  enter  upon  any  premises 
where  any  commercial  fertilizer  is  sold  or  offered  or  exposed  for 
sale  to  ascertain  if  the  provisions  of  this  act  are  complied  with, 
and  to  take  samples  for  analysis  as  provided  for  by  this  act. 
The  analysis  of  all  fertilizers  shall  be  made  by  the  methods 
adopted  by  the  Association  of  Official  Agricultural  Chemists 
of  North  America,  except  that  basic  phosphatic  slag  may  be 
analyzed  by  the  Wagner  Method,  so-called,  until  a  method  of 
analysis  therefor  is  adopted  by  said  association.  The  said  direc- 
tor shall  have  the  right  to  publish  or  cause  to  be  published  in 
reports,  bulletins,  special  circulars  or  otherwise,  the  results 
obtained  by  said  analyses,  and  in  connection  therewith  shall, 
in  each  case,  state  the  cost  of  equivalent  amounts  of  nitrogen, 
phosphoric  acid  and  potash  in  unmixed  materials  when  bought 
for  cash  on  the  market  at  retail.  Said  reports,  bulletins,  cir- 
culars, or  other  publications  shall  also  contain  such  additional 
information  in  relation  to  the  character,  composition,  value  and 
use  of  the  fertilizers  analyzed  as  the  said  director  in  his  discre- 
tion may  see  fit  to  include.  The  said  director  may  at  any  time 
make  or  cause  to  be  made  for  any  person  a  free  analysis  of  any 
commercial  fertilizer  or  brand  of  commercial  fertilizer  sold  or 
offered  or  exposed  for  sale  in  this  commonwealth,  but  he  shall 
not  be  obliged  to  make  such  free  analysis,  or  to  cause  the  same 
to  be  made,  unless  the  samples  therefor  are  taken  and  submitted 
in  accordance  with  the  rules  and  regulations  which  may  be  pre- 
scribed by  him.  The  results  of  any  analysis  made  in  accordance 
with  the  provisions  of  this  act,  except  a  free  analysis  as  afore- 
said, shall  be  sent  by  the  director  to  the  person  named  in  the 
printed  label  of  the  fertilizer  analyzed  at  least  fifteen  days  before 
any  publication  thereof. 

Taking  of  Samples,  etc. 

SECTION  8.  All  samples  of  commercial  fertilizers  taken  for 
analysis  shall  be  of  not  less  than  substantially  one  and  one-half 
pounds  in  weight,  and  every  sample  shall  be  taken,  whenever 
the  circumstances  conveniently  permit,  in  the  presence  of  the 
person  selling  or  offering  or  exposing  for  sale  the  fertilizer 
sampled,  or  of  a  representative  of  such  person.  Broken  packages 
shall  not  be  sampled,  and  all  samples  shall  be  taken  from  sub- 
stantially ten  per  cent  of  the  fertilizer  to  be  sampled,  except 


37 

that  in  the  case  of  a  fertilizer  sold  or  offered  or  exposed  for  sale 
in  bulk  ten  single  samples  shall  be  taken  from  as  many  different 
portions  of  the  lot.  All  samples  taken  shall  be  thoroughly  mixed 
and  divided  into  two  nearly  equal  samples,  placed  in  suitable 
vessels  and  marked  and  sealed.  Both  shall  be  retained  by  the 
director,  but  one  shall  be  held  intact  by  him  for  the  period  of  one 
year  at  the  disposal  of  the  person  named  in  the  label  of  the 
fertilizer  sampled. 

Penalty. 

SECTION  9.  Any  person  hindering  or  obstructing  the  director 
of  the  Massachusetts  Agricultural  Experiment  Station,  or  any 
inspector  or  deputy  of  the  said  director,  in  the  discharge  of  the 
authority  or  duty  conferred  or  imposed  by  any  provision  of  this 
act  and  any  person  violating  any  provision  of  sections  one,  two, 
three,  four  and  five  of  this  act  shall  be  fined  not  less  than  fifty 
dollars  and  not  more  than  two  hundred  dollars  for  each  offence. 
It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  said  director  to  see  that  the  provisions 
of  this  act  are  complied  with,  and  he  may,  in  his  discretion, 
prosecute  or  cause  to  be  prosecuted  any  person  violating  any 
provision  of  this  act.  But  no  complaint  based  upon  an  analysis 
of  samples  shall  be  made  for  .any  such  violation,  if  the  samples 
were  taken  otherwise  than  as  provided  in  this  act.  And  no  com- 
plaint shall  be  made  for  a  failure  of  any  fertilizer  or  brand  of 
fertilizer  to  meet  the  guaranteed  analysis  thereof  if  the  analysis 
of  such  fertilizer  made  by  the  director,  or  by  his  deputy  or 
deputies,  shows  the  amounts  of  the  constituents  thereof  to  be 
substantially  equivalent  to  the  percentages  stated  in  the  label 
of  the  fertilizer. 

Fees. 

SECTION  10.  All  fees  collected  by  the  director  of  the  Massa- 
chusetts Agricultural  Experiment  Station  under  the  provisions  of 
this  act  shall  be  turned  over  by  him  to  the  treasurer  of  the  said 
station,  and  the  amounts  received  and  disbursed  shall  be  kept  in 
a  separate  account,  and  shall  be  audited  and  reported,  as  are 
other  moneys  placed  in  charge  of  the  trustees  of  the  Massachu- 
setts Agricultural  College.  The  money  collected  under  the  pro- 
visions hereof  shall  be  used  under  the  authority  of  the  said 
director  to  meet  the  expenses  incurred  in  carrying  out  the  pro- 
visions of  the  act,  and  should  there  be  a  surplus,  the  surplus 
shall  be  used  in  the  Massachusetts  Agricultural  Experiment 
Station,  under  the  authority  of  its  director,  for  experiments  and 
research  relative  to  soils,  fertilizers  and  manures. 


38 


Certain  Terms  defined. 

SECTION  11.  In  this  act  unless  the  context  or  subject-matter 
otherwise  requires, 

"Agricultural  lime"  includes  all  the  various  forms  of  lime 
intended  or  sold  for  fertilizing  purposes. 

"Available  phosphoric  acid"  means  the  sum  of  the  soluble  and 
reverted  phosphoric  acid,  except  that,  as  applied  to  basic  phos- 
phatic  slag,  the  term  "available  phosphoric  acid"  shall  mean 
that  part  of  the  phosphoric  acid  made  soluble  by  the  Wagner 
method,  so-called,  until  such  time  as  the  Association  of  Official 
Agricultural  Chemists  of  North  America  shall  adopt  a  method  for 
basic  phosphatic  slag,  after  which  it  shall  mean  that  part  of  the 
phosphoric  acid  made  soluble  by  the  method  of  said  association. 

"Brand"  means  any  commercial  fertilizer  distinctive  by 
reason  of  name,  trade-mark  or  guaranteed  analysis,  or  by  any 
method  of  marking. 

"Commercial  fertilizer"  includes  every  natural  or  artificial 
manure  containing  nitrogen  or  phosphoric  acid  or  potash  or  lime, 
except  the  excrements  and  litter  from  domestic  animals  when 
sold  in  their  natural  state;  but  dried  or  partly  dried  manure, 
pulverized  or  ground,  shall  be  included  as  a  commercial  fertilizer. 

"Copy"  means  certified  copy. 

"Fertilizer"  means  commercial  fertilizer. 

"Importer"  means  a  person  who  procures  for  sale  in  this 
commonwealth  commercial  fertilizers  made  in  other  states  or 
countries. 

"Label"  means  printed  label. 

"Lime"  means  calcium  oxide  (Cao). 

"Magnesia"  means  magnesium  oxide  (MgO). 

"Packages"  includes  sacks  and  bags  and  all  other  receptacles. 

"Person"  includes  a  corporation  or  partnership  or  two  or  more 
persons  having  a  joint  or  common  interest. 

"Phosphoric  acid"  means  phosphoric  anhydrid 

"Potash"  means  potassium  oxide  (K^O). 

Repeal. 

SECTION  12.  Sections  eleven  to  seventeen  inclusive  of  chapter 
fifty-seven  of  the  Revised  Laws  and  chapter  two  hundred  and 
eighty-nine  of  the  acts  of  the  year  nineteen  hundred  and  seven 
are  hereby  repealed. 


39 


4.    COMMERCIAL  FEEDSTUFFS. 

ACTS  OF  1912,  CHAPTER  527. 
Sale  and  Analysis  of  Certain  Foodstuff. 

SECTION  1.  In  this  act,  unless  the  context  otherwise  requires: 
—  The  term  "commercial  feeding  stuff''  shall  include  all  feeding 
stuff  used  for  feeding  live  stock  and  poultry  and  containing  not 
more  than  sixty  per  cent  of  water,  except  whole  seeds  or  grains, 
and  the  unmixed  meals  made  directly  from  the  entire  grains  of 
corn,  wheat,  rye,  barley,  oats,  buckwheat,  flaxseed,  kafir,  and 
milo,  whole  hays,  whole  straws,  unground  cotton  seed  hulls  and 
unground  corn  stover  when  unmixed  with  other  materials. 

The  term  "cattle  feed"  shall  include  all  materials  used  for 
feeding  live  stock  and  poultry. 

"Brand"  shall  mean  any  commercial  feeding  stuff  or  cattle 
feed  distinctive  by  reason  of  name,  trade-mark  or  guaranteed 
analysis  or  by  any  method  of  marking. 

"Crude  protein"  shall  mean  the  percentage  of  nitrogen  multi- 
plied by  the  factor  six  and  twenty-five  one  hundredths. 

"Copy", shall  mean  certified  copy. 

"Feeding  stuff"  shall  mean  commercial  feeding  stuff. 

"Importer"  shall  mean  a  person  who  procures  for  sale  or 
distribution  in  this  commonwealth  commercial  feeding  stuff  or 
cattle  feed  from  other  states  or  countries. 

"Label"  shall  mean  printed  label. 

"Package"  shall  include  sacks  and  bags,  tins,  boxes,  jars,  and 
similar  receptacles. 

"Person"  shall  include  a  corporation  or  partnership  or  two  or 
more  persons  having  a  joint  or  common  interest. 

"Tag"  shall  mean  printed  tag. 

Tag  or  Label  to  be  attached  to  Packages. 

SECTION  2.  Every  package,  lot  or  parcel  of  commercial  feeding 
stuff  sold  or  offered  or  exposed  or  kept  for  sale  or  distributed 
within  this  commonwealth  shall  have  affixed  thereto  in  a  con- 
spicuous place,  as  hereinafter  set  forth,  a  tag  or  label  containing 
a  legible  and  plainly  printed  statement  in  the  English  language, 
clearly  and  truly  certifying: 

(a)  the  weight  of  the   contents  of  the  package,  lot  or  parcel; 

(6)  the  name,  brand  or  trade-mark; 

(c)  the  name  and  principal  address  of  the  manufacturer  or 
person  responsible  for  placing  the  commodity  on  the  market; 


40 

(d)  the  minimum  per  cent  of  crude  protein; 

(e)  the  minimum  per  cent  of  crude  fat; 
(/)  the  maximum  per  cent  of  crude  fibre; 

(g)  the   specific  name   of   each   ingredient   used   in   its   manu- 
facture. 

Tag  to  be  affixed  in  a  Conspicuous  Place. 

SECTION  3.  When  any  feeding  stuff  is  sold  or  offered,  exposed 
or  kept  for  sale  or  distributed  in  packages,  the  tag  or  label  shall 
be  affixed  in  a  conspicuous  place  on  the  outside  thereof.  When 
any  feeding  stuff  is  offered,  exposed  or  kept  for  sale  in  bulk,  the 
tag  or  label  shall  be  affixed  in  a  conspicuous  place  on  the  bin  or 
other  enclosure  in  which  the  feeding  stuff  is  contained,  but  need 
not  state  the  number  of  pounds  thereof.  And  when  any  feeding 
stuff  is  sold  or  distributed  in  bulk  the  label  shall  be  affixed  in  a 
conspicuous  place  on  the  car  or  other  vehicle  in  which  the  feeding 
stuff  is  shipped  or  delivered  or  distributed  and  shall  state  the 
number  of  pounds  thereof.  When  any  feeding  stuff  is  sold  in 
packages  furnished  by  the  purchaser  the  seller  shall  furnish  the 
tags  or  labels  therefor.  The  provisions  of  the  printed  tag  or 
label  required  by  this  act  relating  to  the  constituents  contained 
in  any  commercial  feeding  stuff  shall  be  known  and  recognize 
as  the  guaranteed  analysis  of  such  feeding  stuff. 


d 


Copy  of  the  Tag  or  Label  to  be  filed  with  the  Director  of  the  Massachu- 
setts Experiment  Station. 

SECTION  4.  Before  any  manufacturer,  importer  or  other  per- 
son shall  sell,  or  offer,  expose,  or  keep  for  sale,  or  distribute  in 
this  commonwealth  any  commercial  feeding  stuff,  he  shall  file 
with  the  director  of  the  Massachusetts  agricultural  experiment 
station,  or  his  authorized  deputy,  for  registration,  a  copy  certi- 
fied by  him  to  be  a  true  copy  of  the  tag  or  label  required  by  this 
act,  excepting  the  item  as  to  the  number  of  pounds,  for  every 
brand  of  feeding  stuff  to  be  sold  or  offered,  exposed  or  kept  for 
sale  or  to  be  distributed  in  this  commonwealth.  But  no  agent 
or  other  person  shall  be  obliged  to  file  a  copy  of  the  tag  or  label 
of  any  brand  of  feeding  stuff,  a  copy  of  which  has  been  filed  by 
the  manufacturer  or  importer  of  such  brand  and  for  which  a 
certificate  of  registration  has  been  issued.  No  feeding  stuff  or 
brand  of  feeding  stuff  shall  be  sold  or  offered,  exposed  or  kept 
for  sale  or  distributed  in  this  commonwealth  until  the  tag  or 
label  therefor  has  been  registered  by  the  director  of  the  Massa- 
chusetts agricultural  experiment  station,  or  his  authorized  deputy, 
and  a  certificate  of  such  registration  has  been  issued  by  him. 


41 


Certified  Copy,  etc. 

SECTION  5.  A  certified  copy  of  the  tag  or  label  required  by 
this  act  shall  be  filed  with  the  director  of  the  Massachusetts 
agricultural  experiment  station,  or  his  authorized  deputy,  for 
registration  prior  to  the  first  day  of  September  in  each  year  for 
every  brand  of  commercial  feeding  stuff  to  be  sold  or  offered, 
exposed  or  kept  for  sale  or  to  be  distributed  in  this  common- 
wealth during  the  year  beginning  with  said  first  day  of  Septem- 
ber. The  said  director  or  his  authorized  deputy  may  thereafter 
permit  a  manufacturer,  importer  or  other  person  to  file  a  copy 
of  the  tag  or  label  of  a  brand  of  feeding  stuff,  and  may  register 
the  same  for  said  year  in  accordance  with  the  rules  and  regula- 
tions which  may  be  prescribed  by  the  said  director. 

Tag  or  Label  to  be  registered. 

SECTION  6.  When  the  certified  copy  of  the  tag  or  label  of  any 
brand  of  commercial  feeding  stuff  has  been  filed  as  provided  by 
this  act,  the  director  of  the  Massachusetts  agricultural  experi- 
ment station,  or  his  authorized  deputy,  shall  register  such  tag 
or  label  if  he  finds  the  same  to  be  in  accordance  with  the  require- 
ments of  this  act,  and  shall  issue,  or  cause  to  be  issued,  a  cer- 
tificate of  such  registration,  and  the  said  certificate  shall  be 
deemed  to  authorize  the  sale  in  this  commonwealth,  in  compli- 
ance with  this  act,  of  the  brand  of  feeding  stuff  for  which  the 
certificate  is  issued,  up  to  and  including  the  thirty-first  day  of 
August  of  the  year  for  which  it  is  issued. 

Misleading  or  Deceptive  Tag  prohibited. 

SECTION  7.  The  director  of  the  Massachusetts  agricultural  ex- 
periment station  or  his  authorized  deputy  may  refuse  to  register 
any  commercial  feeding  stuff  under  a  name,  brand,  or  trade- 
mark which,  in  his  opinion,  would  be  misleading  or  deceptive, 
or  which  would  tend  to  mislead  or  deceive^  as  to  the  materials 
of  which  the  feeding  stuff  is  composed.  The  director  or  his  said 
deputy  may  refuse  to  register  more  than  one  feeding  stuff  under 
the  same  name  or  brand,  or  to  register  any  feeding  stuff  under 
a  name  or  brand  to  the  use  of  which  the  applicant  for  registra- 
tion is  not  lawfully  entitled.  Should  any  feeding  stuff  be  regis- 
tered in  this  commonwealth  and  it  be  discovered  afterward  that 
any  provision  of  this  act  was  violated  in  obtaining  such  regis- 
tration or  that  such  registration  is  in  any  respect  in  violation  of 


42 

any  provision  of  this  act,  the  director  of  the  Massachusetts  agri- 
cultural experiment  station,  and  his  authorized  deputy,  shall 
have  power  to  cancel  such  registration  and  the  certificate  issued 
therefor.  No  manufacturer,  importer,  or  other  person  shall  sell 
or  offer  or  expose  or  keep  for  sale  or  distribute  in  this  common- 
wealth any  commercial  feeding  stuff,  registration  whereof  has 
been  cancelled  by  the  director  or  his  authorized  deputy. 

Analysis,  etc. 

SECTION  8.  Every  commercial  feeding  stuff  and  cattle  feed,  or 
brand  thereof,  sold  or  offered,  exposed  or  kept  for  sale  or  distrib- 
uted in  this  commonwealth  shall  be  subject  to  analysis  by  the 
director  of  the  Massachusetts  agricultural  experiment  station,  or 
by  his  designated  deputy  or  deputies,  and  the  said  director  is 
hereby  authorized  and  it  is  made  his  duty  to  make  or  cause  to 
be  made  in  each  year  one  or  more  analyses  of  every  brand  of 
feeding  stuff  sold  or  offered,  exposed  or  kept  for  sale  or  dis- 
tributed in  this  commonwealth,  and  he  is  hereby  given  free 
access  in  person  and  by  deputy  to  all  places  of  business,  mills, 
buildings,  carriages,  cars,  vessels  and  other  receptacles  of  what- 
soever kind  used  in  the  manufacture,  sale,  storage  or  delivery 
of  any  feeding  stuff  or  cattle  feed  in  this  commonwealth,  or  in 
the  importation  or  transportation  of  any  feeding  stuff  or  cattle 
feed  for  sale  or  distribution  in  this  commonwealth.  The  director 
and  his  deputies  are  further  authorized  to  open  any  receptacle 
containing  or  supposed  to  contain  any  feeding  stuff  or  cattle  feed 
for  sale  or  distribution  as  aforesaid,  and  to  take  samples  for 
analysis,  as  provided  by  this  act.  The  methods  of  analyses  of 
all  feeding  stuffs  and  cattle  feeds  shall  be  those  in  force  at  the 
time  by  the  Association  of  Official  Agricultural  Chemists  of 
North  America. 

Rights  of  Director,  etc. 

SECTION  9.  The  said  director  shall  have  the  right  to  publish 
or  cause  to  be  published  in  reports,  bulletins,  special  circulars, 
or  otherwise  the  results  obtained  by  said  analyses,  and  said  re- 
ports, bulletins,  circulars,  or  other  publications  shall  contain  such 
additional  information  in  relation  to  the  character,  composition, 
value  and  use  of  the  feeding  stuffs  or  cattle  feed  analyzed  as  the 
director  may,  in  his  discretion,  see  fit  to  include.  The  said 
director,  in  his  discretion,  may  at  any  time  make  or  cause  to  be 
made  for  consumers  a  free  analysis  of  any  brand  of  feeding  stuff 


43 

or  cattle  feed  sold  or  offered  or  exposed  or  kept  for  sale  or  dis- 
tributed in  this  commonwealth;  but  all  samples  for  such  free 
analysis  shall  be  taken  and  submitted  in  accordance  with  the 
rules  and  regulations  which  may  be  prescribed  by  the  director. 
The  results  of  any  'analysis  of  a  commercial  feeding  stuff  made 
in  accordance  with  the  provisions  of  this  act,  except  a  free 
analysis  as  aforesaid,  shall  be  sent  by  the  director,  at  least  fif- 
teen days  before  any  publication  thereof,  to  the  person  named 
on  the  tag  or  label  of  the  feeding  stuff  analyzed. 

Samples  to  be  taken,  etc. 

SECTION  10.  All  samples  for  analysis  of  any  commercial  feed- 
ing stuff  or  cattle  feed  shall  be  taken,  whenever  the  circum- 
stances conveniently  permit,  in  the  presence  of  at  least  one  wit- 
ness, and  no  action  shall  be  maintained  for  a  violation  of  the 
provisions  of  this  act  based  upon  an  analysis  of  a  sample  taken 
from  less  than  five  separate  original  packages,  unless  there  be 
less  than  five  separate  original  packages  in  the  lot,  in  which  case 
parts  of  the  official  sample  shall  be  taken  from  each  original 
package.  If  the  feeding  stuff  or  cattle  feed  is  in  bulk,  parts 
shall  be  taken  from  not  less  than  five  different  places  in  the 
lot:  provided,  that  this  shall  not  exclude  sampling  from  bulk 
when  the  feeding  stuff  or  cattle  feed  is  not  exposed  sufficiently 
to  take  parts  from  five  different  places,  in  which  case  parts  shall 
be  taken  from  as  many  places  as  practicable.  All  samples  thus 
taken  shall  be  placed  in  suitable  vessels,  marked  and  sealed.  A 
part  of  each  sample  shall  be  held  by  the  said  director  or  his 
deputy  at  the  disposal  of  the  person  named  on  the  tag  or  label 
of  the  feeding  stuff  sampled  for  fifteen  days  after  the  results  of 
the  analysis  have  been  reported  as  provided  in  section  nine. 

Selling  of  Mixed  Stuffs  prohibited. 

SECTION  11.  No  commercial  feeding  stuff  or  cattle  feed  or 
brand  thereof  that  has  been  mixed  or  adulterated  with  any  sub- 
stance or  substances  injurious  to  the  health  of  live  stock  or 
poultry  shall  be  sold  or  offered  or  exposed  or  kept  for  sale  or 
distributed  in  this  commonwealth. 

Penalty  for  selling  without  Tag  or  Label. 

SECTION  12.  Any  manufacturer,  importer,  or  other  person  who 
shall  sell  or  offer,  expose  or  keep  for  sale,  or  distribute  in  this 
commonwealth,  any  commercial  feeding  stuff  without  the  tag  or 


44 

label  required  by  this  act,  or  with  a  tag  or  label  that  has  not 
been  registered,  or  with  a  tag  or  label  the  registration  of  which 
has  been  cancelled  by  the  director  of  the  Massachusetts  agricul- 
tural experiment  station  or  his  authorized  deputy,  or  who  shall 
file  with  the  said  director  or  his  authorized  deputy  for  registra- 
tion a  false  copy  of  the  tag  or  label  of  any  feeding  stuff  or  brand 
of  feeding  stuff,  or  who  shall  impede,  obstruct  or  hinder  the 
director  or  any  of  his  deputies  in  the  discharge  of  the  authority 
or  duty  conferred  or  imposed  by  any  provision  of  this  act,  or 
who  shall  sell  or  offer,  expose  or  keep  for  sale  or  distribute  in 
this  commonwealth  any  feeding  stuff  which  contains  a  smaller 
per  cent  of  crude  protein  or  crude  fat,  or  a  larger  per  cent  of 
crude  fibre  than  is  certified  in  the  tag  or  label  of  such  feeding 
stuff  to  be  contained  therein,  or  who  shall  fail  properly  to  state 
the  specific  name  of  every  ingredient  used  in  its  manufacture, 
or  who  shall  sell  or  offer,  expose  or  keep  for  sale  or  distribute 
in  this  commonwealth  any  feeding  stuff  or  cattle  feed  or  brand 
thereof  which  has  been  mixed  or  adulterated  with  any  substance 
or  substances  injurious  to  the  health  of  live  stock  or  poultry 
shall  be  deemed  guilty  of  a  violation  of  this  act  and  upon  con- 
viction any  such  manufacturer,  importer  or  other  person  shall 
be  fined  not  more  than  one  hundred  dollars  for  the  first  viola- 
tion, and  not  less  than  one  hundred  dollars  for  each  subsequent 
violation. 

Rules  and  Regulations. 

SECTION  13.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  director  of  the  Massa- 
chusetts agricultural  experiment  station  to  see  that  the  provi- 
sions of  this  act  are  complied  with,  and  he  may  prescribe  and 
enforce  such  rujes  and  regulations  relative  to  the  sale  of  com- 
mercial feeding  stuff  or  cattle  feed  as  he  deems  necessary  to  carry 
into  effect  the  full  intent  and  meaning  of  this  act.  He  may  in  his 
discretion  prosecute  or  cause  to  be  prosecuted  any  person  violat- 
ing any  provision  of  this  act,  and  no  complaints  shall  be  made  or 
prosecuted  for  any  such  violation  except  with  the  authorization 
and  approval  of  the  said  director. 

Appropriation . 

SECTION  14.  To  defray  the  cost  of  collecting  samples,  making 
analyses,  and  of  otherwise  carrying  out  the  provisions  of  this 
act,  a  sum  not  exceeding  six  thousand  dollars  shall  be  allowed 
annually  from  the  treasury  of  the  commonwealth,  payable  in 
quarterly  payments  into  the  treasury  of  said  station.  All  moneys 


45 

received  and  disbursed  under  this  act  shall  be  kept  in  a  separate 
account  and  shall  be  audited  and  reported  as  are  other  moneys 
placed  in  charge  of  the  trustees  of  the  Massachusetts  Agricul- 
tural College.  In  case  at  any  time  there  should  be  a  surplus,  the 
surplus  shall  be  used  in  the  Massachusetts  agricultural  experi- 
ment station,  under  the  authority  of  its  director,  for  experiments 
and  research  relative  to  the  feeding  of  farm  animals. 

Repeal. 

SECTION  15.  Chapter  one  hundred  and  twenty-two  of  the  acts 
of  the  year  nineteen  hundred  and  three,  chapter  three  hundred 
and  thirty-two  of  the  acts  of  the  year  nineteen  hundred  and  four, 
and  all  acts  and  parts  of  acts  inconsistent  herewith  are  hereby 
repealed. 


46 


III.    STATUTES  RELATING  TO  RURAL   CREDIT,  CO-OPERA- 
TION AND  DRAINAGE. 

1.    CREDIT  UNIONS.i 

GENERAL  ACTS  OF  1915,  CHAPTER  268. 
"  Credit  Union,"  Term  denned. 

SECTION  1.  A  corporation  organized  under  this  act  shall 
include  in  the  corporate  name  the  two  words  "credit  union",  to 
which  may  be  added  the  word  "bank."  Other  distinguishing 
words  may  be  used.  The  words  "credit  union",  whenever  here- 
inafter used,  shall  apply  to  a  corporation  heretofore  organized 
under  the  provisions  of  chapter  four  hundred  and  nineteen  of  the 
acts  of  the  year  nineteen  hundred  and  nine,  or  hereafter  organ- 
ized under  the  provisions  of  this  act. 

Incorporation,  etc. 

SECTION  2.  Seven  or  more  persons,  resident  in  this  common- 
wealth, who  have  associated  themselves  by  an  agreement  in 
writing  with  the  intention  of  forming  a  corporation  for  the 
purpose  of  accumulating  and  investing  the  savings  of  its  members 
and  making  loans  to  members  for  provident  purposes,  may,  with 
the  consent  of  the  board  of  bank  incorporation,  become  a  corpo- 
ration upon  complying  with  all  of  the  provisions  of  section  three 
of  this  act.  The  board  of  bank  incorporation  is  hereby  author- 
ized to  grant  such  consent  when  it  is  satisfied  that  the  proposed 
field  of  operation  is  favorable  to  the  success  of  such  corporation, 
and  that  the  standing  of  the  proposed  incorporators  is  such  as  to 
give  assurance  that  its  affairs  will  be  administered  in  accordance 
with  the  spirit  of  this  act. 

Certain  Provisions  of  Law  to  apply  to  Organization. 

SECTION  3.  Credit  unions  shall  be  organized  under  the  provi- 
sions, so  far  as  applicable,  of  sections  two  to  six,  inclusive,  of 
chapter  three  hundred  and  seventy-four  of  the  acts  of  the  year 
nineteen  hundred  and  four  as  amended  by  section  four  of  chapter 
two  hundred  and  four  of  the  acts  of  the  year  nineteen  hundred 
and  six  and  any  other  amendments  thereof,  except  that  the  fee 

1  See  also  circular  on  "Credit  Unions,"  published  by  the  Massachusetts  State  Bank  Commis- 
sioner. 


47 

for  filing  and  recording  the  articles  of  organization,  including  the 
issuing  by  the  secretary  of  the  commonwealth  of  the  certificate 
of  incorporation,  shall  be  five  dollars. 

The  provisions  relating  to  supervision  by  the  bank  commis- 
sioner, so  far  as  applicable,  of  chapter  five  hundred  and  ninety  of 
the  acts  of  the  year  nineteen  hundred  and  eight  and  any  amend- 
ments thereof  shall  apply  to  credit  unions  incorporated  under 
this  act. 

Restrictions. 

SECTION  4.  No  person,  partnership  or  association,  and  no  cor- 
poration, except  such  as  have  heretofore  been  incorporated  under 
the  provisions  of  chapter  four  hundred  and  nineteen  of  the  acts 
of  the  year  nineteen  hundred  and  nine  and  such  as  shall  hereafter 
be  incorporated  under  the  provisions  of  this  act,  shall  hereafter 
transact  business  under  any  name  or  title  which  contains  the  two 
words  "credit  union."  The  proceedings  authorized  and  the 
penalties  imposed  under  the  provisions  of  section  seventeen  of 
chapter  five  hundred  and  ninety  of  the  acts  of  the  year  nineteen 
hundred  and  eight  and  all  acts  in  amendment  thereof  or  in 
addition  thereto,  so  far  as  applicable,  shall  apply  in  all  cases  of 
violation  of  the  provisions  of  this-  section. 

Deposits  and  Loans. 

SECTION  5.  A  credit  union  may  receive  the  savings  of  its 
members  in  payment  for  shares  or  on  deposit;  may  lend  to  its 
members  at  reasonable  rates,  or  invest,  as  hereinafter  provided, 
the  funds  so  accumulated;  and  may  undertake  such  other  activi- 
ties relating  to  the  purpose  of  the  association,  as  its  by-laws  may 
authorize,  any  provisions  in  section  one  of  chapter  one  hundred 
and  fourteen  of  the  Revised  Laws  notwithstanding. 

By-laws. 

SECTION  6.  The  by-laws  shall  prescribe  the  name  of  the  corpo- 
ration, the  purposes  for  which  it  is  formed,  the  conditions  of 
residence  or  occupation  which  qualify  persons  for  membership, 
the  par  value  of  the  shares  of  capital  stock  and  the  maximum 
number  of  shares  which  may  be  held  by  any  one  member,  the 
conditions  on  which  shares  may  be  paid  in,  transferred  and  with- 
drawn, the  conditions  on  which  deposits  may  be  received,  and 
withdrawn,  the  method  of  receipting  for  money  paid  on  account 
of  shares  or  deposited,  the  number  of  directors  and  number  of 


48 

members  of  the  credit  committee,  the  duties  of  the  several 
officers,  the  fines,  if  any,  which  shall  be  charged  for  failure  to 
meet  obligations  to  the  corporation  punctually,  the  date  of  the 
annual  meeting  of  members,  the  manner  in  which  members  shall 
be  notified  of  meetings,  the  number  of  members  which  shall 
constitute  a  quorum  at  meetings,  and  such  other  regulations  as 
may  seem  necessary. 

Approval  by  Bank  Commissioner. 

SECTION  7.  No  credit  union  shall  receive  deposits  or  payments 
on  account  of  shares,  or  make  any  loans,  until  its  by-laws  have 
been  approved  in  writing  by  the  bank  commissioner,  nor  shall 
any  amendments  to  its  by-laws  become  operative  until  they  have 
so  been  approved. 

Certain  Property  exempt  from  Taxation. 

SECTION  8.  All  property  of  a  credit  union,  except  real  estate, 
and  all  capital  stock  in  a  credit  union  shall  be  exempt  from  state 
and  local  taxation,  except  legacy  and  succession  taxes. 

Capital  to  be  Unlimited. 

SECTION  9.  The  capital  of  a  credit  union  shall  be  unlimited 
in  amount.  Shares  of  capital  stock  may  be  subscribed  for  and 
paid  in  such  manner  as  the  by-laws  shall  prescribe,  except  that 
the  par  value  of  shares  shall  not  exceed  ten  dollars. 

Shares  may  be  issued  to  Minors,  etc. 

SECTION  10.  Shares  may  be  issued  and  deposits  received  in 
the  name  of  a  minor,  and  such  shares  and  deposits  may,  in  the 
discretion  of  the  directors,  be  withdrawn  by  such  minor,  or  by 
his  parent  or  guardian,  and  in  either  case  payments  made  on 
such  withdrawals  shall  be  valid  and  shall  release  the  said  cor- 
poration from  any  and  all  liability  to  the  minor,  parent,  or 
guardian.  A  minor  under  the  age  of  eighteen  years  shall  not 
have  the  right  to  vote.  If  shares  are  held  or  deposits  made  in 
trust,  the  name  and  residence  of  the  beneficiary  shall  be  dis- 
closed, and  the  account  shall  be  kept  in  the  name  of  such  holder 
as  trustee  for  such  person.  If  no  other  notice  of  the  existence 
and  terms  of  such  trust  has  been  given  in  writing  to  the  cor- 
poration, such  shares  or  deposits  may,  upon  the  death  of  the 
trustee,  be  transferred  to  or  withdrawn  by  the  person  who  was 


49 

named  by  the  trustee  as  the  beneficiary  or  by  his  legal  repre- 
sentatives, and  such  transfer  or  withdrawal  shall  release  the  cor- 
poration from  any  and  all  liability  to  any  other  claimant  upon 
such  stock  or  deposit. 

Investment  of  Funds. 

SECTION  11.  The  capital,  deposits  and  surplus  funds  of  a 
credit  union  shall  be  invested  in  loans  to  members  with  the 
approval  of  the  credit  committee  as  provided  in  section  seven- 
teen of  this  act,  and  any  capital,  deposits  or  surplus  funds  in 
excess  of  the  amount  for  which  loans  shall  be  approved  by  the 
credit  committee  may  be  deposited  in  savings  banks  or  trust 
companies  incorporated  under  the  laws  of  this  commonwealth, 
or  in  national  banks  located  therein,  or  may  be  invested  in  the 
bonds  of  any  other  credit  union  or  any  farmland  bank  incor- 
porated under  the  laws  of  this  commonwealth,  or  in  any  securi- 
ties which  are  at  the  time  of  their  purchase  legal  investments 
for  savings  banks  in  this  commonwealth,  or,  with  the  approval 
of  the  bank  commissioner,  may  be  deposited  in  other  credit 
unions  or  may  be  invested  in  the  shares  of  other  credit  unions 
or  of  farmland  banks  or  co-operative  banks  incorporated  under 
the  laws  of  this  commonwealth:  provided,  that  the  total  amount 
invested  in  the  shares  of  other  credit  unions,  farmland  banks  or 
co-operative  banks  shall  not  exceed  thirty  per  cent  of  the  capital 
and  surplus,  and  that  not  more  than  twenty  per  cent  shall  be 
invested  in  the  shares  of  other  credit  unions,  nor  more  than 
twenty  per  cent  in  farmland  bank  shares,  nor  more  than  twenty 
per  cent  in  co-operative  bank  shares. 

Fiscal  Year. 

SECTION  12.  The  fiscal  year  of  every  credit  union  shall  end 
at  the  close  of  business  on  the  last  business  day  of  October. 

Meetings. 

SECTION  13.  The  annual  meeting  of  the  corporation  shall  be 
held  at  such  time  and  place  as  the  by-laws  prescribe,  but  must 
be  held  within  thirty  days  after  the  close  of  the  fiscal  year. 
Special  meetings  may  be  called  by  a  majority  of  the  directors  or 
of  the  supervisory  committee,  and  shall  be  called  by  the  clerk 
upon  written  application  of  ten  or  more  members  entitled  to 
vote.  Notice  of  all  meetings  of  the  corporation  and  of  all  meet- 
ings of  the  board  of  directors  and  of  committees  shall  be  given 


50 

in  the  manner  prescribed  by  the  by-laws.  No  member  shall  be 
entitled  to  vote  by  proxy  or  to  have  more  than  one  vote,  and, 
after  a  credit  union  has  been  incorporated  one  year,  no  member 
thereof  shall  be  entitled  to  vote  until  he  has  been  a  member  for 
more  than  three  months. 

Entrance  Fee. 

The  members  at  each  annual  meeting  shall  fix  the  amount  of 
the  entrance  fee  for  the  ensuing  year,  which  may  be  made  pro- 
portional to  the  number  of  shares  issued  to  a  member,  the  maxi- 
mum amount  to  be  loaned  any  one  member,  and,  upon  recom- 
mendation of  the  board  of  directors,  may  declare  dividends  in 
accordance  with  the  provisions  of  section  twenty-two  of  this 
act. 

Acts  of  Credit  Committee  Subject  to  Review. 

At  any  annual  or  special  meeting  the  members  may  review  the 
acts  of  the  credit  committee  or  of  the  board  of  directors,  and 
may  reverse  any  decision  of  the  credit  committee  of  the  board 
of  directors  by  a  three  fourths  vote  of  the  members  present  and 
entitled  to  vote:  provided,  that  such  three  fourths  vote  com- 
prises a  majority  of  all  of  the  members  of  the  credit  union. 

Vacancies. 

In  the  event  of  the  death,  resignation,  or  removal  from  office 
of  the  board  of  directors  or  any  member  thereof,  or  of  the  credit 
committee  or  of  any  member  thereof,  the  members  of  the  credit 
union  at  a  special  meeting,  called  for  the  purpose,  may  elect 
other  members  to  fill  the  vacancies  until  the  next  annual  meeting. 

Amendment  of  By-laws. 

At  any  annual  or  special  meeting  the  members  of  a  credit 
union  may  amend  the  by-laws  by  a  three  fourths  vote  of  the 
members  present  and  entitled  to  vote;  provided,  that  a  copy  of 
the  proposed  amendment  or  amendments  shall  have  been  sent  to 
each  member  with  the  notice  of  the  meeting. 

Board  of  Directors,  Number,  Election,  etc. 

SECTION  14.  The  business  and  affairs  of  a  credit  union  shall 
be  managed  by  a  board  of  not  less^than  five  directors,  a  credit 
committee  of  not  less  than  three  members,  and  a  supervisory 
committee  of  three  members  to  be  elected  at  the  annual  meeting 


51 

of  the  corporation.  Unless  the  number  of  members  of  the  credit 
union  is  less  than  eleven,  no  member  of  said  board  shall  be  a 
member  of  either  of  said  committees,  nor  shall  one  person  be  a 
member  of  more  than  one  committee,  and  all  the  members  of 
said  board  and  of  said  committees,  as  well  as  all  officers  whom 
they  may  elect,,  shall  be  sworn  to  the  faithful  performance  of 
their  duties  and  shall  hold  their  several  offices  until  others  are 
elected  and  qualified  in  their  stead.  A  record  of  every  such 
qualification  shall  be  filed  and  preserved  with  the  records  of  the 
corporation.  Members  of  the  supervisory  committee  shall  be 
elected  annually  for  a  term  of  one  year.  Directors  and  mem- 
bers of  the  credit  committee  shall  be  elected  for  a  term  of  not 
less  than  one  year  nor  more  than  three  years,  as  the  by-laws 
shall  provide.  If  the  term  is  more  than  one  year,  they  shall  be 
divided  into  classes,  and  an  equal  number,  as  nearly  as  may  be, 
elected  each  year.  If  a  director  or  a  member  of  any  of  these 
committees  ceases  to  be  a  member  of  the  credit  union,  his  office 
shall  thereupon  become  vacant. 

Election  of  Officers. 

SECTION  15.  The  directors,  at  their  first  meeting  after  the 
annual  meeting  of  the  corporation,  shall  elect  from  their  own 
number  a  president,  a  vice  president,  a  clerk  and  a  treasurer,  who 
shall  be  the  executive  officers  of  the  corporation,  and  who  shall 
hold  office  until  their  successors  shall  have  been  elected  and 
qualified.  The  offices  of  clerk  and  treasurer  may  be  held  by  the 
same  person. 

Directors,  Powers,  Duties,  etc. 

The  board  of  directors  shall  have  the  general  direction  of  the 
affairs  of  the  corporation,  and  shall  meet  as  often  as  may  be 
necessary.  It  shall  be  their  special  duty  to  act  upon  all  applica- 
tions for  membership  and  upon  the  expulsion  of  members,  to  fix 
the  amount  of  the  surety  bond  required  of  any  officer  having 
custody  of  funds,  to  determine  the  rate  of  interest  on  loans  and 
deposits,  to  fill  vacancies  in  the  board  of  directors  until  new 
members  shall  be  elected  and  qualified,  to  make  recommenda- 
tions to  the  members  of  the  credit  union  relative  to  the  amount 
of  entrance  fee  to  be  charged  new  members,  the  maximum 
amount  to  be  loaned  any  one  member,  the  advisability  of  de- 
claring a  dividend  and  the  amount  to  be  declared,  the  need  of 
amendments  to  the  by-laws,  and  any  other  matters  upon  which, 
in  their  opinion,  the  members  should  act  at  any  annual  or  special 


52 

meeting.  When  authorized  so  to  do  by  the  members  at  any 
annual  meeting  or  at  a  special  meeting  called  for  the  purpose, 
the  board  of  directors,  with  the  approval  of  the  bank  commis- 
sioner, may  borrow  money  for  the  purpose  of  re-loaning  to 
members. 

Supervisory  Committee;  Powers,  Duties, 'etc. 

SECTION  16.  The  supervisory  committee  shall  inspect  from 
time  to  time  the  securities,  cash  and  accounts  of  the  corporation 
and  shall  keep  fully  informed  of  the  financial  condition  of  the 
corporation  and  shall  supervise  the  acts  of  its  board  of  directors, 
credit  committee  and  officers.  At  any  time  the  supervisory 
committee,  by  a  unanimous  vote,  may  suspend  any  officer  of  the 
corporation,  or  any  member  or  members  of  the  credit  committee 
or  of  the  board  of  directors,  and,  by  a  majority  vote,  may  call  a 
meeting  of  the  shareholders  to  consider  any  violation  of  this  act 
or  of  the  by-laws,  or  any  practice  of  the  corporation  which,  in 
the  opinion  of  the  committee,  is  unsafe  or  unauthorized.  Within 
seven  days  after  the  suspension  of  any  officer,  or  any  member  or 
members  of  the  credit  committee  or  of  the  board  of  directors,  the 
supervisory  committee  shall  cause  notice  to  be  given  of  a  special 
meeting  of  the  members  of  the  credit  union  to  take  such  action 
relative  to  such  suspension  as  may  seem  necessary.  The  super- 
visory committee  may  make  temporary  appointments  to  fill 
vacancies  caused  by  the  absence,  illness  or  suspension  of  any 
officer,  director,  or  member  of  any  committee,  and  shall  fill  any 
vacancies  in  its  own  number  until  new  members  shall  have  been 
duly  elected  and  qualified.  The  board  of  directors  and  the  super- 
visory committee,  acting  jointly,  shall  make  appointments  to  fill 
vacancies  in  the  credit  committee  until  new  members  of  the  com- 
mittee shall  be  duly  elected  and  qualified. 

Credit  Committee  to  approve  Loans. 

SECTION  17.  The  credit  committee  shall  hold  meetings,  of 
which  due  nqtice  shall  be  given  to  its  members,  for  the  purpose 
of  considering  applications  for  loans,  and  no  loan  shall  be  made 
unless  all  members  of  the. committee  who  are  present  when  the 
application  is  considered,  and  at  least  two  thirds  of  all  the  mem- 
bers of  the  committee,  approve  the  loan  and  are  satisfied  that  it 
promises  to  benefit  the  borrower.  All  applications  for  loans  shall 
be  made  in  writing  and  shall  state  the  purpose  for  which  the  loan 
is  desired  and  the  security  offered. 


53 


Purposes  of  Loans,  etc. 

SECTION  18.  Loans  upon  the  security  of  first  mortgages  upon 
farm  lands  shall  in  no  case  exceed  in  amount  fifty  per  cent  of  the 
value  of  the  property  pledged  as  security,  and  shall  be  for  the 
following  purposes  only:  (a)  the  clearing,  draining  or  otherwise 
reclaiming  and  permanently  improving  agricultural  lands;  (b)  the 
providing  of  facilities  for  irrigation;  (c)  the  planting  and  early 
care  of  orchards;  (d)  the  erection  of  silos,  cold  storage  plants, 
greenhouses  and  permanent  farm  buildings;  (e)  the  purchase  of 
farms  and  farm  lands  for  personal  occupation  and  management; 
(/)  the  discharge  of  existing  farm  mortgages;  and,  (g)  subject  to 
the  approval  of  the  bank  commissioner,  such  other  improvements 
of  a  permanent  nature  as,  in  the  opinion  of  the  directors,  tend 
to  develop  agricultural  resources.  The  mortgage  deeds  securing 
such  loans  shall  contain  a  provision  for  immediate  foreclosure  if 
the  money  lent  is  applied  in  whole  or  in  part  to  purposes  not 
hereby  authorized,  or  if,  in  the  opinion  of  the  directors,  it  is 
being  spent  unwisely  or  wastefully. 

Sale  of  Farmland  Bonds. 

A  credit  union  may,  with  the  approval  of  the  bank  commis- 
sioner, by  vote  of  its  board  of  directors,  issue,  sell  and  trade  in  its 
own  collateral  trust  bonds,  which  shall  be  known  and  described 
as  farmland  bonds  and  shall  be  secured  as  hereinafter  provided 
by  the  deposit  of  first  mortgage  notes  on  farm  lands  and  the 
mortgages  securing  the  same.  In  case  of  failure  of  a  credit  union 
to  pay  the  interest  upon  its  bonds  or  the  principal  when  due,  the 
bonds  shall  be  an  underlying  lien  on  all  its  assets  and  the  bank 
commissioner  shall  forthwith  take  possession  of  the  assets  and 
wind  up  the  affairs  of  the  corporafion.  Loans  on  the  security  of 
first  mortgages  on  farm  lands  shall  be  made,  and  bonds  of  credit 
unions  secured  thereby  shall  be  issued,  in  accordance  with  the 
provisions  of  chapter  two  hundred  and  thirty-one  of  the  General 
Acts  of  the  current  year  relating  to  farmland  mortgages  and 
farmland  bonds,  and  any  acts  in  amendment  thereof  or  in  addi- 
tion thereto,  so  far  as  applicable. 

Certain  Officers  not  to  receive  Compensation. 

SECTION  19.  No  member  of  the  board  of  directors  or  of  either 
the  credit  or  supervisory  committee  shall  receive  any  compensa- 
tion for  his  services  as  a  member  of  the  said  board  or  of  such 


54 

committee,  nor  shall  any  member  of  the  credit  or  supervisory 
committee,  directly  or  indirectly,  borrow  from  the  corporation  or 
become  surety  for  any  loan  or  advance  made  by  it. 

Certain  Restrictions  upon  Directors. 

No  member  of  the  board  of  directors  shall,  directly  or  in- 
directly, borrow  from  the  corporation  or  become  surety  for  any 
loan  or  advance  made  by  it,  unless  such  loan  or  advance  shall 
have  been  approved  at  a  meeting  of  the  members  of  the  credit 
union  by  a  majority  vote  of  those  present,  and  the  notice  of 
such  meeting  shall  have  stated  that  the  question  of  loans  to 

directors  would  be  considered  at  such  meeting. 

• 

Compensation  of  Certain  Officers. 

The  officers  elected  by  the  board  cf  directors  may  receive  such 
compensation  as  the  board  shall  authorize. 

Guaranty  Fund. 

SECTION  20.  Before  the  payment  of  an  annual  dividend  in  any 
year,  there  shall  be  set  apart  as  a  guaranty  fund  twenty  per 
cent  of  the  net  income  which  has  accumulated  during  the  fiscal 
year,  except  as  hereinafter  provided.  Said  fund  and  the  invest- 
ments thereof  shall  belong  to  the  corporation  and  shall  be  held  to 
meet  contingencies  or  losses  in  its  business.  All  entrance  fees 
shall  be  added  at  once  to  the  guaranty  fund.  Upon  recommen- 
dation of  the  board  of  directors,  the  members  at  any  annual 
meeting  may  increase,  and,  whenever  said  fund  equals  or  exceeds 
the  amount  of  capital  stock  actually  paid  in,  may  decrease,  the 
proportion  of  profits  which  is  required  by  this  section  to  be  set 
apart  as  a  guaranty  fund:  provided,  that,  if  the  corporation 
holds  stock  in  other  credit  unions  or  in  farmland  banks,  the 
percentage  of  profits  to  be  set  apart  as  a  guaranty  fund  shall 
not  be  decreased  until  the  amount  of  the  fund  equals  or  exceeds 
the  amount  of  capital  stock  of  the  corporation  actually  paid  in 
and  in  addition  thereto  the  amount  actually  paid  for  the  shares  of 
stock  in  such  credit  unions  and  farmland  banks. 

Supervisory  Committee  to  make  Report. 

SECTION  21.  Immediately  before  a  meeting  of  the  directors 
called  to  consider  the  recommendation  of  a  dividend,  the  super- 
visory committee  shall  make  a  thorough  audit  of  the  receipts, 


55 

disbursements,  income,  assets  and  liabilities  of  the  corporation 
for  the  fiscal  year,  and  shall  make  a  full  report  thereon  to  the 
directors.  Said  report  shall  be  read  at  the  annual  meeting  and 
shall  be  filed  and  preserved  with  the  records  of  the  corporation. 

Dividends,  Source. 

SECTION  22.  At  the  annual  meeting,  a  dividend  may  be 
declared  from  income  which  has  been  actually  collected  during 
the  fiscal  year  next  preceding  and  which  remains  after  the  deduc- 
tion of  all  expenses,  losses,  interest  on  deposits,  and  the  amount 
required  to  be  set  apart  as  a  guaranty  fund,  or  such  dividend 
may  be  declared  in  whole  or  in  part  from  undivided  earnings  of 
preceding  years  not  to  exceed  twenty  per  cent  thereof  in  any  one 
year,  provided  such  earnings  are  a  part  of  the  surplus  of  the  cor- 
poration in  excesss  of  all  requirements  of  the  guaranty  fund. 

How  paid. 

Such  dividends  shall  be  paid  on  all  fully  paid  shares  out- 
standing at  the  close  of  the  fiscal  year,  but  shares  which  become 
fully  paid  during  the  year  shall  be  entitled  only  to  a  propor- 
tional part  of  said  dividend,  calculated  from  the  first  day  of  the 
month  following  such  payment  in  full.  Dividends  due  to  a 
member  shall  be  paid  to  him  in  cash  or  credited  to  the  account 
of  partly  paid  shares  for  which  he  has  subscribed. 

Report  to  Bank  Commissioner. 

SECTION  23.  Within  twenty  days  after  the  last  business  day 
of  October  in  each  year,  every  credit  union  shall  make  to  the 
bank  commissioner  a  report  in  such  form  as  he  may  prescribe, 
signed  by  the  president,  treasurer  and  a  majority  of  the  super- 
visory committee,  who  shall  certify  and  make  oath  that  the 
report  is  correct  according  to  their  best  knowledge  and  belief. 
Any  credit  union  which  neglects  to  make  the  said  report  within 
the  time  herein  prescribed  shall  forfeit  to  the  commonwealth  five 
dollars  for  each  day  during  which  such  neglect  continues. 

Expulsion  of  Members. 

SECTION  24.  The  board  of  directors  may  expel  from  a  credit 
union  any  member  who  has  not  carried  out  his  engagements 
with  the  credit  union,  or  who  has  been  convicted  of  a  criminal 
offence,  or  who  neglects  or  refuses  to  comply  with  the  provisions 


56 

of  this  act  or  of  the  by-laws,  or  whose  private  life  is  a  source  of 
scandal,  or  who  habitually  neglects  to  pay  his  debts,  or  who  shall 
become  insolvent  or  bankrupt,  or  who  shall  have  deceived  the 
corporation  or  any  committee  thereof  with  regard  to  the  use  of 
borrowed  money;  but  no  member  shall  so  be  expelled  until  he 
has  been  informed  in  writing  of  the  charges  against  him,  and  an 
opportunity  has  been  given  to  him,  after  reasonable  notice,  to  be 
heard  thereon. 

Disposition  of  Funds  upon  Withdrawal. 

The  amounts  paid  in  on  shares  or  deposited  by  members  who 
have  withdrawn  or  have  been  expelled  shall  be  paid  to  them,  in 
the  order  of  withdrawal  or  expulsion,  but  only  as  funds  therefor 
become  available  and  after  deducting  any  amounts  due  by  such 
members  to  the  credit  union.  Such  expulsion  shall  not  operate 
to  relieve  a  member  from  any  remaining  liability  to  the  credit 
union. 

Dissolution  of  Corporation. 

SECTION  25.  At  any  meeting  specially  called  for  the  purpose 
the  members,  upon  recommendation  of  not  less  than  two  thirds 
of  the  board  of  directors,  may  dissolve  the  corporation  by  vote 
of  two  thirds  of  the  members  of  the  credit  union  entitled  to 
vote.  A  committee  of  three  shall  thereupon  be  elected  to 
liquidate  the  assets  of  the  corporation  under  the  direction  of 
the  bank  commissioner,  and  each  share  of  the  capital  stock, 
according  to  the  amount  paid  in  thereon,  shall  be  entitled  to  its 
proportional  part  of  the  assets  in  liquidation  after  all  deposits 
and  debts  have  been  paid. 

Repeals. 

SECTION  26.  Chapter  four  hundred  and  nineteen  of  the  acts 
of  the  year  nineteen  hundred  and  nine  and  chapter  four  hundred 
and  thirty  seven  of  the  acts  of  the  year  nineteen  hundred  and 
fourteen  are  hereby  repealed.  All  credit  unions  incorporated 
prior  to  the  passage  of  this  act  shall  be  hereafter  subject  to  the 
provisions  of  this  act,  but  the  provisions  of  this  act  shall  not 
affect  any  rights  acquired  under  any  contract  made  by  such 
credit  unions  prior  to  the  passage  of  this  act.  The  provisions  of 
this  act  shall  not  be  rendered  inoperative  or  be  limited  or  other- 
wise affected  by  any  acts  or  parts  of  acts  inconsistent  therewith. 


57 


2.    FARMLAND  BANKS. 

GENERAL  ACTS  OF  1915,  CHAPTER  231. 
General  Provisions. 

SECTION  1.  In  this  act  the  words  "farmland  bank"  shall  mean 
a  corporation  formed  in  accordance  with  the  provisions  of  this 
act  for  the  purpose  of  promoting  rural  mortgage  credit  in  the 
commonwealth;  the  word  "bank",  unless  otherwise  designated, 
shall  mean  a  farmland  bank;  the  words  "land  reserve  fund" 
shall  mean  the  capital  stock  of  a  farmland  bank;  the  words 
"land  reserve  certificate"  shall  mean  a  certificate  of  shares  of 
stock  in  a  farmland  bank;  the  word  "mortgage"  shall  mean  a 
mortgage  upon  farm  land  of  which  a  farmland  bank  is  the  mort- 
gagee; the  word  "bond"  shall  mean  a  bond  issued  by  a  farm- 
land bank  and  secured  by  mortgages  upon  farm  lands;  the  word 
"farm"  shall  mean  any  tract  of  land  of  not  less  than  two  acres, 
cultivated  or  managed  wholly  or  principally  for  the  purpose  of 
obtaining  a  revenue  from  the  sale  of  farm,  dairy,  or  poultry 
products;  the  words  "farm  land"  shall  mean  any  land,  im- 
proved or  unimproved,  having  a  present  or  potential  value  for 
agricultural  purposes  and  comprising  the  whole  or  a  part  of  a 
farm  in  this  commonwealth;  the  word  "board"  shall  mean  the 
board  of  bank  incorporation  authorized  by  section  four  of  chap- 
ter two  hundred  and  four  of  the  acts  of  the  year  nineteen  hun- 
dred and  six;  and  the  word  "commissioner"  shall  mean  the 
bank  commissioner  of  the  commonwealth. 

This  act  may  be  cited  as  The  Farmland  Bank  Law. 

Incorporation. 

SECTION  2.  Ten  or  more  persons  resident  in  this  common- 
wealth, who  have  associated  themselves  by  an  agreement  in  writ- 
ing with  the  intention  of  forming  a  farmland  bank  for  the  pur- 
pose of  promoting  rural  mortgage  credit,  may,  with  the  consent 
of  the  board  of  bank  incorporation,  become  a  corporation  upon 
complying  with  all  of  the  provisions  of  this  act.  The  board  is 
hereby  authorized  to  grant  such  consent  when  it  is  satisfied  that 
the  proposed  field  of  operation  is  favorable  to  the  success  of  a 
farmland  bank,  and  that  the  standing  of  the  proposed  incor- 
porators  is  such  as  to  give  assurance  that  its  affairs  will  be  ad- 
ministered in  accordance  with  the  spirit  of  this  act.  The  words 
"Farmland  Bank"  shall  be  a  part  of  the  corporate  name  of 


58 

every  corporation  organized  under  the  provisions  of  this  act,  and 
the  word  "Farmland"  shall  not  be  used  in  the  corporate  name 
of  any  other  corporation  doing  business  in  this  commonwealth. 

Powers. 

SECTION  3.  Every  corporation  which  is  subject  to  the  pro- 
visions of  this  act  shall  have  the  following  powers  and  privileges 
and  shall  be  subject  to  the  following  liabilities  and  restrictions :  - 

First.  —  To  adopt  and  use  a  corporate  seal. 

Second.  —  To  have  perpetual  succession  in  its  corporate  name 
unless  dissolved  according  to  the  provisions  of  this  act. 

Third.  —  To  make  contracts,  incur  liabilities  and  borrow 
money  as  hereinafter  provided. 

Fourth.  —  To  sue  and  be  sued  in  its  corporate  name,  and  to 
prosecute  or  defend  to  final  judgment,  execution  or  decree  in 
any  court  of  law  or  equity. 

Fifth.  —  To  elect  not  less  than  six  nor  more  than  fifteen 
directors,  a  treasurer,  clerk,  and  auditing  committee,  and,  by 
its  board  of  directors,  to  elect  a  president,  vice  president,  com- 
mittee on  loans,  and  other  officers  and  agents,  and  to  fix  the 
compensation  of  all  directors,  officers  and  committees  arid  to 
define  their  duties. 

Sixth.  —  To  make  by-laws,  not  inconsistent  with  the  laws  of 
this  commonwealth,  for  regulating  its  government  and  for  the 
administration  of  its  affairs  as  herein  provided. 

Seventh.  —  To  make  loans  upon  farm  lands  anywhere  within 
the  commonwealth:  provided, 

(a)  That  such  loans  shall  be  made  for  a  term  not  longer 
than  thirty-five  years,  and  shall  be  secured  by  a  first  mortgage 
on  farm  lands. 

(6)  That  no  loan  shall  exceed  fifty  per  cent  of  the  value  of  the 
mortgaged  property,  the  value  to  be  determined  by  an  appraisal 
by  the  committee  on  loans  as  hereinafter  provided. 

(c)  That  every  mortgage  for  a  period  longer  than  five  years 
shall  contain  a  mandatory  provision  for  the  amortization  of  the 
loan   at   maturity,   or  reduction   of  the   same   by   annual,   semi- 
annual, or  quarterly  payments  on  account  of  principal. 

(d)  That  every  loan,  for  a  period  longer  than  five  years,  or  any 
unpaid  balance  thereof,  may  be  paid  off  in  whole  or  in  part  by 
the  borrower,  in  accordance  with  rules  to  be  prescribed  by  the 
said  bank  and  approved  by  the  commissioner,   at  any  interest 
period  after  such  loan  has  continued  for  five  years. 


59 

(e)  That  the  total  amount  loaned  to  any  one  individual 
or  corporation  shall  never  at  any  time  exceed  ten  per  cent  of 
the  total  amount  of  the  then  paid-in  land  reserve  fund  and 
surplus. 

(/)  That  no  loan  shall  be  made  by  any  bank  upon  the  security 
of  its  own  land  reserve  certificates,  or  the  certificates  of  any  other 
farmland  bank. 

Eighth.  —  To  issue,  sell  and  trade  in  its  own  collateral  trust 
bonds,  which  shall  be  known  and  described  as  farmland  bonds 
and  shall  be  secured,  as  hereinafter  provided,  by  the  deposit  of 
first  mortgage  notes  on  farm  lands  and  the  mortgages  securing 
the  same. 

Organization. 

SECTION  4.  Farmland  banks  shall-  be  organized  under  the 
provisions,  so  far  as  applicable,  of  sections  two  to  six,  inclusive, 
of  chapter  three  hundred  and  seventy-four  of  the  acts  of  the 
year  nineteen  hundred  and  four,  as  amended  by  section  four  of 
chapter  two  hundred  and  four  of  the  acts  of  the  year  nineteen 
hundred  and  six,  and  any  other  amendments  thereof,  except  that 
the  fee  for  filing  and  recording  the  articles  of  organization,  in- 
cluding the  issuing  by  the  secretary  of  the  commonwealth  of  the 
certificate  of  incorporation,  shall  be  five  dollars. 

The  provisions  relating  to  supervision  by  the  bank  commis- 
sioner, so  far  as  applicable,  of  chapter  five  hundred  and  ninety 
of  the  acts  of  the  year  nineteen  hundred  and  eight  and  any 
amendments  thereof,  shall  apply  to  banks  incorporated  under 
this  act. 

By-laws. 

SECTION  5.  The  by-laws  may  prescribe,  subject  to  the  pro- 
visions of  this  act,  the  name  of  the  corporation,  the  purposes  for 
which  it  is  formed,  the  location  of  the  principal  office,  the  time 
and  place  of  holding  and  the  manner  of  conducting  its  meetings, 
the  number  of  shareholders  and  directors  necessary  to  constitute 
a  quorum,  the  powers  and  duties  of  its  directors  and  officers,  the 
expediency  of  providing  for  an  executive  committee  and  the  num- 
ber of  members  thereof  and  the  duties  which  may  be  delegated 
to  it,  the  amount  of  the  treasurer's  bond  and  the  expediency  of 
requiring  bonds  of  other  officers  or  directors  of  the  bank,  and 
the  amount  of  such  bonds,  the  conditions  under  which  a  new 
certificate  of  stock  may  be  issued  in  place  of  a  certificate  which 
is  alleged  to  have  been  lost  or  destroyed,  the  requisite  notice  and 


60 

\ 

advertisement  when  bonds  are  called  before  maturity,  the  method 
in  general  of  transacting  its  business,  and  the  manner  by  which 
the  by-laws  may  be  altered,  amended  or  repealed. 

Fiscal  Year. 

SECTION  6.  The  fiscal  year  of  every  farmland  bank  shall  end 
at  the  close  of  business  on  the  last  business  day  of  October. 

Directors,  Officers  and  Committees. 

SECTION  7.  The  business  of  every  bank  subject  to  this  act 
shall  be  managed  and  conducted  by  a  board  of  not  less  than  six 
nor  more  than  fifteen  directors,  a  president,  a  vice  president,  a 
clerk,  a  treasurer,  a  committee  on  loans  of  five  members,  an 
auditing  committee  of  three  members,  and  such  other  officers, 
committees  and  agents  as  the  by-laws  may  authorize.  The  clerk, 
treasurer,  board  of  directors,  and  auditing  committee  shall  be 
elected  annually  by  ballot  by  the  shareholders.  The  president, 
vice  president,  and  committee  on  loans  shall  be  elected  annually 
by  ballot  by  the  board  of  directors.  The  president  and  vice 
president  shall  be  chosen  from  the  board  of  directors.  Two 
thirds  of  the  members  of  the  board  of  directors  shall  be  share- 
holders, and  the  remainder  shall  be  borrowers  from  the  bank 
who  are  not  shareholders,  if  there  is  a  sufficient  number  of  such 
borrowers.  All  officers  and  the  members  of  the  auditing  com- 
mittee shall  be  shareholders.  All  officers  and  directors  of  the 
corporation  shall  be  residents  of  the  commonwealth  and  shall 
be  elected  for  a  term  of  one  year  and  until  their  successors  are 
duly  elected  and  qualified.  The  manner  of  choosing  or  of  ap- 
pointing all  other  officers,  committees,  and  agents,  and  of  filling 
all  vacancies  shall  be  prescribed  by  the  by-laws,  and,  in  default 
of  such  by-law,  vacancies  may  be  filled  by  the  board  of  directors, 
except  vacancies  in  the  auditing  committee. 

Powers  and  Duties  of  Directors  and  Officers. 

SECTION  8.  The  board  of  directors  shall  exercise  all  the  powers 
of  the  corporation,  except  as  is  otherwise  provided  by  law  or  by 
the  by-laws  of  the  corporation.  A  bank  may,  in  its  by-laws, 
provide  for  an  executive  committee  to  be  elected  by  and  from 
its  board  of  directors.  Tor  such  committee  may  be  delegated  the 
management  of  the  current  and  ordinary  business  of  the  bank, 
and  such  other  duties  as  the  by-laws  may  prescribe.  The  duties 


61 

of  the  officers  shall  be  defined  in  the  by-laws.  Officers  of  the 
bank  shall  be  sworn  to  the  faithful  discharge  of  their  duties. 
The  treasurer  shall  be  required,  and  any  other  officer  entrusted 
with  the  property  of  the  bank  may  be  required,  to  give  a  bond 
in  such  sum  and  with  such  sureties  as  the  by-laws  may  prescribe. 
The  clerk  shall  record  all  votes  of  the  corporation  in  a  book  to 
be  kept  for  that  purpose. 

Committee  on  Loans. 

SECTION  9.  The  committee  on  loans  shall  approve  in  writing 
an  application  for  a  loan  before  the  same  shall  be  granted. 
Every  application  for  a  loan  shall  be  made  in  writing  and  shall 
state  the  purpose  for  which  the  loan  is  desired.  No  loan  shall 
be  made,  except  as  is  hereinafter  provided,  unless  the  committee 
on  loans  is  satisfied  that  it  tends  to  benefit  the  borrower  and  to 
develop  agricultural  resources,  nor  unless  it  has  received  the  ap- 
proval in  writing  of  a  majority  of  the  members  of  the  committee, 
who  shall  certify  after  an  examination  that  in  their  best  judg- 
ment the  loan  to  be  made  does  not  exceed  fifty  per  cent  of  the 
value  of  the  property.  An  applicant  for  a  loan  which  has  been 
refused  by  the  committee  on  loans  may  appeal  to  the  board  of 
directors,  who  are  hereby  given  authority  to  approve  and  author- 
ize loans  on  appeal  from  the  committee. 


Auditing  Committee. 

SECTION  10.  The  auditing  committee  shall  inspect  the  securi- 
ties, cash  and  accounts  of  the  bank,  and  shall  employ  account- 
ants, authorized  by  law  to  examine  savings  banks,  to  audit  the 
books,  records  and  accounts,  and  may  do  so  without  previous 
notice  to  the  directors  or  officers  and  with  such  frequency  and 
at  such  times  as  they  deem  necessary  or  expedient.  At  the  an- 
nual meeting  of  the  shareholders  the  committee  shall  submit  its 
report,  including  the  results  of  audits  made  during  the  year,  and 
such  recommendations  as  it  may  desire  to  make.  At  any  time 
it  may,  by  a  majority  vote,  call  a  meeting  of  the  shareholders 
to  consider  any  violation  of  this  act  or  of  the  by-laws,  or  any 
matter  relating  to  the  affairs  of  the  bank  which,  in  the  opinion 
of  said  committee,  requires  action  on  the  part  of  the  shareholders. 
The  committee,  unless  otherwise  provided  in  the  by-laws,  shall 
prescribe  the  method  of  keeping  the  mortgage  register,  of  holding 
and  preserving  the  mortgages  and  other  securities,  of  crediting 


62 

payments  on  mortgages,  of  cancelling  mortgages,  and  of  releas- 
ing the  liens  of  mortgages.  The  committee  shall  also  ascertain 
that  all  mortgages,  deeds,  assignments  and  other  evidences  of 
title  to  real  estate  have  been  duly  recorded  according  to  law,  and, 
in  the  event  of  failure  on  the  part  of  the  proper  officers  to  record 
any  such  instrument,  the  auditing  committee  shall  certify  such 
fact  upon  the  records  of  the  bank,  and  such  officers  shall  be 
liable  in  damages  to  the  bank  for  any  loss  sustained  by  reason 
of  the  failure  to  record  such  instrument.  The  auditing  commit- 
tee shall  fill  vacancies  in  its  own  membership  until  the  next  an- 
nual meeting  of  the  shareholders. 

Meetings. 

SECTION  11.  The  annual  meeting  of  the  corporation  shall  be 
held  at  such  time  and  place  as  the  by-laws  shall  prescribe,  but  it 
must  be  held  within  thirty  days  after  the  close  of  the  fiscal  year. 
Special  meetings  of  the  shareholders  may  be  called  by  the  presi- 
dent, or  by  a  majority  of  the  directors  or  of  the  auditing  commit- 
tee, and  shall  be  called  by  the  clerk  upon  written  application  of 
three  or  more  shareholders  who  hold  at  least  one  tenth  part  in 
interest  of  the  capital  stock,  stating  the  time,  place  and  purpose 
of  the  meeting.  Meetings  of  the  board  of  directors  shall  be  held 
at  least  quarterly.  Notice  of  all  meetings  of  the  shareholders  and 
of  the  board  of  directors  and  of  committees  shall  be  given  in  the 
manner  prescribed  in  the  by-laws,  but  at  least  seven  days'  notice 
shall  be  given  of  all  meetings  of  'the  shareholders,  which  notice 
shall  state  the  purposes  for  which  the  meeting  is  called.  Meet- 
ings of  the  shareholders  may  be  held  without  notice  if  all  the 
shareholders  waive  notice  in  writing  and  such  waiver  is  filed  with 
the  records  of  the  meeting.  Meetings  of  the  board  of  directors 
may  be  held  without  notice  if  all  members  thereof  waive  notice 
in  writing  and  such  waiver  is  filed  with  the  records  of  the  meet- 
ing. Meetings  of  committees  may  be  held  without  notice  if  all 
members  thereof  waive  notice  in  writing.  All  meetings  of  the 
shareholders  and  of  the  board  of  directors  shall  be  held  within 
the  commonwealth.  If,  by  reason  of  the  death  or  absence  of  the 
officers  of  a  corporation  or  other  cause,  there  is  no  person  duly 
authorized  to  call  or  preside  at  a  legal  meeting,  or  if  the  clerk  or 
other  officer  refuses  or  neglects  to  call  it,  a  justice  of  the  peace 
may,  upon  written  application  of  three  or  more  of  the  share- 
holders, issue  a  warrant  to  any  one  of  them,  directing  him  to  call 
a  meeting  by  giving  such  notice  as  is  required  by  law,  and  may, 


63 

by  the  same  warrant,  direct  him  to  preside  at  the  meeting  until  a 
clerk  is  duly  chosen  and  qualified,  if  no  officer  of  the  corporation 
is  present  who  is  legally  authorized  to  preside. 

Quorum  and  Proxies. 

SECTION  12.  Unless  the  by-laws  otherwise  provide,  a  majority 
in  interest  of  all  shares  issued  and  outstanding  shall  constitute  a 
quorum  at  a  meeting  of  the  corporation,  and  a  majority  of  the 
members  shall  constitute  a  quorum  at  a  meeting  of  the  board  of 
directors  or  of  any  committee.  No  corporation  shall,  directly  or 
indirectly,  vote  upon  any  share  of  its  own  stock.  Shareholders 
shall  have  one  vote  for  each  share  of  stock  owned  by  them. 
Executors,  administrators,  guardians,  trustees  or  persons  in  any 
other  representative  or  fiduciary  capacity  may  vote  as  share- 
holders upon  shares  held  in  such  capacity.  Shares  owned  by  any 
corporation  may  be  voted  by  any  duly  authorized  officer  or  agent 
thereof.  Shareholders  may  vote  either  in  person  or  by  proxy. 
No  proxy  which  is  dated  more  than  six  months  prior  to  the 
meeting  named  therein  shall  be  valid,  and  no  proxy  shall  be 
valid  after  the  final  adjournment  of  the  meeting  for  which  it  was 
issued. 

Land  Reserve  Fund. 

SECTION  13.  The  capital  stock  of  a  farmland  bank  shall  not 
be  less  than  fifty  thousand  dollars  nor  more  than  five  hundred 
thousand  dollars  and  shall  be  held  by  the  bank  as  a  separate 
fund,  to  be  known  as  the  Land  Reserve  Fund. 

The  par  value  of  shares  in  the  Land  Reserve  Fund  shall  be  five 
dollars  or  any  multiple  thereof  not  exceeding  one  hundred  dollars. 

No  person  shall  directly  or  indirectly  hold  or  own  more  than 
ten  per  cent  of  the  shares  in  a  farmland  bank  exclusive  of  any 
shares  which  he  may  hold  as  collateral  security. 

Any  bank,  at  a  meeting  duly  called  for  the  purpose,  by  vote  of 
the  majority  of  its  shares  outstanding,  may  amend  its  articles  of 
incorporation  to  authorize  an  increase  or  a  reduction  in  the 
amount  of  its  capital  stock,  and  in  the  case  of  an  increase  may 
determine  the  terms  and  the  manner  of  the  disposition  of  such 
additional  stock,  but  in  no  event  shall  the  capital  stock  be  in- 
creased to  an  amount  exceeding  five  hundred  thousand  dollars, 
nor  reduced  to  an  amount  less  than  fifty  thousand  dollars.  If  an 
increase  in  the  total  amount  of  the  capital  stock  shall  have  been 
authorized  by  vote  of  the  shareholders  in  accordance  with  the 


64 

provisions  hereof,  the  articles  of  amendment  shall  also  set  forth 
the  total  amount  of  capital  stock  previously  authorized  and  a 
statement  that  the  increased  amount  of  capital  stock  has  all  been 
paid  in  in  cash,  and  the  bank  commissioner  shall  in  no  case  ap- 
prove a  certificate  showing  an  increase  of  capital  stock  until  he  is 
satisfied  that  such  payment  in  full  has  been  made  to  the  bank. 
If  a  reduction  of  the  capital  stock  shall  have  been  authorized  by 
the  shareholders  in  accordance  with  the  provisions  hereof,  the 
articles  of  amendment  shall  also  set  forth  the  total  amount  of 
capital  stock  previously  authorized,  the  amount  of  the  reduction 
and  the  manner  in  which  it  shall  be  effected,  and  a  copy  of  the 
vote  authorizing  the  reduction.  No  reduction  of  capital  stock 
shall  be  lawful  which  renders  the  bank  bankrupt  or  insolvent, 
but  the  capital  stock  may  be  reduced,  if  the  assets  of  the  bank 
are  not  reduced  thereby,  by  the  surrender  by  every  shareholder 
of  his  shares  and  the  issue  to  him  in  lieu  thereof  of  a  proportional 
decreased  number  of  shares  and  such  reduction  shall  not  create 
any  liability  of  the  shareholders  of  such  bank  in  case  of  the 
subsequent  bankruptcy  of  such  bank. 

Who  may  be  Shareholders. 

SECTION  14.  Any  person,  firm,  association,  society,  or  organi- 
zation, and  any  co-operative  bank,  credit  union,  trust  company, 
or  other  corporation  may  purchase  and  hold  shares  in  any  farm- 
land bank,  subject  to  the  provisions  of  any  laws  expressly  pro- 
hibiting or  restricting  investment  therein  by  any  such  corpora- 
tion, association,  society  or  organization. 

Land  Reserve  Certificates. 

SECTION  15.  Every  shareholder  shall  be  entitled  to  a  land 
reserve  certificate  in  a  form  approved  by  the  commissionerj  which 
shall  be  signed  by  the  president  and  by  the  treasurer  of  the  cor- 
poration, shall  be  sealed  with  its  seal,  and  shall  certify  that  the 
holder  is  the  owner  of  the  number  of  shares  represented  by  the 
certificate.  Land  reserve  certificates  may  be  transferred  upon 
the  books  of  the  corporation  in  accordance  with  the  laws  relating 
to  the  transfer  of  stock  in  general  business  corporations.  The 
directors  of  a  farmland  bank  may,  unless  otherwise  provided  by 
the  by-laws,  determine  the  conditions  upon  which  a  new  certifi- 
cate may  be  issued  in  place  of  any  certificate  which  is  alleged  to 
have  been  lost  or  destroyed. 


65 


Bonds. 

SECTION  16.  Farmland  bonds  in  a  form  approved  by  the  com- 
missioner may  be  issued  by  a  bank  by  vote  of  its  board  of  direc- 
tors whenever  the  bank  holds  as  mortgagee  farm  land  mortgages 
of  a  term  longer  than  five  years  in  amount  sufficient  to  secure 
such  issue.  Each  issue  of  bonds  shall  constitute  a  separate  series 
and  shall  be  so  designated,  the  first  series  being  designated  as 
"Series  One  of  Farmland  Bonds  of  the  Farmland 

Bank,"  and  subsequent  series  accordingly.  No  series  shall  be 
issued  for  less  than  an  aggregate  sum  of  ten  thousand  dollars  nor 
for  more  than  ninety-five  per  cent  of  the  amount  of  the  mort- 
gages against  which  it  is  issued.  Bonds  may  be  issued  in  denom- 
inations of  fifty  dollars  or  any  multiple  thereof,  but  no  bond  shall 
be  for  a  larger  amount  than  one  thousand  dollars.  Bonds  may 
bear  such  rate  of  interest  as  may  be  determined  by  the  directors, 
but  not  exceeding  five  per  cent  per  annum.  They  shall  be  pay- 
able on  a  date  specified  and  shall  be  subject  to  call  by  the  bank 
at  two  per  cent  above  par  with  accrued  interest  at  any  interest 
period  after  the  date  of  issue,  or  after  a  date  specified  in  the 
bond,  after  such  notice  and  advertisement  as  may  be  provided 
in  the  by-laws,  or,  if  no  provision  is  made  in  the  by-laws,  as  shall 
be  approved  by  the  commissioner.  Mortgages  pledged  as  col- 
lateral security  for  bonds  of  any  series  shall  be  kept  at  all  times 
in  the  possession  and  under  the  control  of  the  bank,  or,  upon 
direction  of  the  commissioner,  shall  be  deposited  with  a  trustee 
who  shall  be  appointed  by  the  bank  with  the  approval. of  the 
commissioner,  and  shall  hold  the  mortgage  notes  and  mortgages 
for  the  bond  holders.  As  the  amortization  payments  are  received 
and  credited  upon  the  mortgage  notes  so  deposited  as  security, 
the  bonds  issued  by  the  bank  and  secured  thereby  shall  be  called 
and  paid,  or  purchased  in  the  open  market  and  retired,  to  the 
extent  of  the  payments  received,  and  credited  upon  the  mortgage 
notes  held  as  security  therefor,  under  rules  and  regulations 
adopted  by  the  bank  with  the  approval  of  the  commissioner,  or 
the  payments  so  received  may  be  deposited  by  the  bank,  or,  if  a 
trustee  has  been  appointed,  shall  be  paid  over  to  the  trustee,  to 
be  deposited  at  interest  as  an  amortization  fund  to  meet  the 
payment  of  the  notes  at  maturity.  Only  mortgages  for  a  period 
longer  than  five  years  shall  be  pledged  as  collateral  for  farmland 
bonds.  Bonds  issued  by  any  bank  in  accordance  with  the  provi- 
sions of  this  act  shall  be  a  legal  investment  (1)  for  any  savings 
bank  or  trust  company  to  an  amount  not  exceeding  one  fifth  of 


66 

the  deposits  of  such  savings  bank  or  trust  company;  (2)  for 
trust  funds  and  estates  and  for  funds  and  estates  under  the  juris- 
diction of  or  administered  by  any  of  the  courts  of  the  common- 
wealth; (3)  for  insurance  companies  as  defined  and  prescribed  by 
section  thirty-seven  of  chapter  five  hundred  and  seventy-six  of 
the  acts  of  the  year  nineteen  hundred  and  seven,  and  any  amend- 
ment thereof;  (4)  for  surplus  funds  of  co-operative  banks  in 
addition  to  the  investments  authorized  by  section  eleven  of 
chapter  one  hundred  and  fourteen  of  the  Revised  Laws;  ($)  for 
the  sinking  funds  of  the  commonwealth  or  of  any  county  or  city 
or  town  thereof. 

Investments. 

SECTION  17.  The  land  reserve  fund,  and  the  surplus  fund  to 
the  amount  of  one  fourth  of  the  land  reserve  fund,  shall  be  in- 
vested only  in  (1)  first  mortgages  upon  farm  lands,  which  shall 
have  the  approval  of  the  committee  on  loans  or  the  board  of 
directors  as  herein  provided;  (2)  bonds  and  notes  which  are  at 
the  time  of  their  purchase  legal  investments  for  savings  banks  in 
this  commonwealth;  (3)  investments,  other  than  real  estate  and 
mortgages  upon  real  estate,  which  shall  be  approved  by  the  com- 
missioner: provided,  that  the  surplus  fund,  when  other  funds  of 
the  bank  are  not  sufficient,  may  be  expended  in  meeting  the 
accruing  obligations  and  necessary  current  expenses  of  conducting 
the  business  of  the  bank.  Any  uninvested  portion  of  the  land 
reserve  fund  or  the  surplus  fund  may  be  deposited,  pending 
investment,  in  any  national  bank  or  trust  company  in  the  com- 
monwealth. 

Holdings  of  Real  Estate. 

SECTION  18.  A  farmland  bank  may  purchase  and  hold  real 
estate  only  as  provided  in  this  section: 

First.  —  It  may  own  the  building  in  which  its  offices  are 
located,  and  may  lease  such  portion  of  the  building  as  may  not 
be  required  for  the  business  of  the  bank:  provided,  that  no  part 
of  the  land  reserve  fund  or  the  surplus  fund  required  by  the 
provisions  of  this  act  shall  be  invested  in  the  purchase  of  such 
building. 

Second.  —  It  may  hold  real  estate  acquired  by  the  foreclosure 
of  mortgages  owned  by  it,  or  by  purchase  at  sales  made  under 
the  provisions  of  such  mortgages,  or  upon  judgments  for  debts 
due  to  it,  or  in  settlements  effected  to  secure  such  debts,  but  all 
such  real  estate  shall  be  sold  by  the  bank  within  five  years  after 


67 

the  title  thereof  is  vested  in  it,  unless  .the  commissioner  upon 
petition  of  the  committee  on  loans  of  such  bank  for  cause  shall 
grant  additional  time  for  the  sale  of  such  real  estate. 

Loans. 

SECTION  19.  Loans  shall  be  made  only  upon  security  of  first 
mortgages  upon  farm  lands.  The  rate  of  interest  upon  loans  shall 
in  no  event  be  more  than  six  per  cent,  but  an  additional  charge 
to  the  borrower  may  be  made,  to  be  applied  to  the  cost  of 
administering  the  affairs  of  the  bank,  which  charge  in  no  case 
shall  exceed  one  per  cent  of  the  amount  unpaid  on  the  loan  and 
shall  be  paid  in  annual,  semi-annual,  or  quarterly  payments  at 
the  same  time  that  the  interest  is  paid.  The  rate  of  interest  upon 
loans  for  a  period  longer  than  five  years  shall  not  exceed  the  rate 
of  interest  upon  the  bonds  secured  thereby  by  more  than  one  per 
cent  annually  upon  the  amount  unpaid  on  the  loan. 

Upon  loans  for  a  period  longer  than  five  years  amortization 
payments  shall  be  made  in  such  amounts  as  shall  be  stated  in  the 
mortgage  note  and  mortgage,  which  amounts  shall  be  sufficient 
to  pay  the  principal  in  full  at  maturity  and  shall  be  payable  in 
equal  annual,  semi-annual,  or  quarterly  payments  at  the  same 
time  that  the  interest  is  paid.  A  borrower  may  pay  the  amount 
of  his  mortgage  loan  or  any  part  thereof  on  any  interest  day  by 
surrendering  at  par  and  accrued  interest  bonds  of  the  series  for 
which  his  mortgage  is  pledged  as  security. 

Fines  may  be  imposed  upon  borrowers  for  failure  to  pay  inter- 
est or  amortization  payments  promptly,  but  such  fines  shall  not 
exceed  one  half  of  one  per  cent  per  month  upon  the  unpaid  part 
of  the  loan  for  the  time  that  the  default  continues.  In  no  event 
shall  fines  for  more  than  six  months  upon  any  one  default  be 
collected. 

Dividends  and  Surplus. 

SECTION  20.  The  directors  may  from  time  to  time  declare 
dividends  to  be  paid  out  of  the  profits  of  the  bank,  but  no  divi- 
dend shall  be  declared  unless  the  combined  amount  of  the  land 
reserve  and  surplus  funds  is  equal  to  five  per  cent  of  the  par 
value  of  the  bonds  outstanding  at  the  time  the  dividend  is  de- 
clared. No  dividend  shall  be  declared  exceeding  six  per  cent  per 
annum  upon  the  par  value  of  the  land  reserve  certificates  out- 
standing, except  as  is  hereinafter  provided.  Net  earnings  in 
excess  of  the  dividend  declared  shall  annually  be  carried  to 


68 

surplus  until  the  surplus  fund  shall  equal  twenty-five  per  cent  of 
the  land  reserve  fund.  Dividends  shall  be  cumulative  only  after 
the  surplus  fund  shall  have  been  established  and  maintained 
equal  to  twenty-five  per  cent  of  the  land  reserve  fund.  Any 
profit  not  required  to  maintain  the  land  reserve  and  surplus 
funds,  and  to  pay  cumulative  dividends  not  exceeding  six  per 
cent  per  annum,  may  be  carried  in  amount  not  exceeding  fifty 
per  cent  to  surplus  until  the  surplus  fund  shall  equal  the  land 
reserve  fund,  and  any  amount  not  carried  to  surplus  shall  be 
annually  divided  in  equal  shares  of  which  one  half  shall  be 
placed  to  the  credit  of  the  borrowers  in  amounts  in  proportion 
to  their  loans  unpaid  at  the  time  of  such  distribution,  and  the 
remaining  half  shall  be  paid  as  an  extra  dividend  upon  the  out- 
standing land  reserve  certificates. 

Exemption  from  Taxation. 

SECTION  21.  All  property  of  a  bank  incorporated  under  the 
provisions  of  this  act,  except  real  estate,  and  all  land  reserve 
certificates  and  farmland  bonds  issued  by  the  bank,  shall  be 
exempt  from  state  and  local  taxation,  except  legacy  and  suc- 
cession taxes. 

Articles  of  Amendment. 

SECTION  22.  No  amendment  for  alteration  of  the  agreement 
of  association  or  articles  of  organization  shall  take  effect  until 
said  articles  of  amendment,  signed  and  sworn  to  by  the  presi- 
dent, treasurer  and  a  majority  of  the  directors,  shall  have  been 
approved  by  the  commissioner  and  filed  in  the  office  of  the  sec- 
retary of  the  commonwealth.  The  fee  for  filing  and  recording 
such  articles  of  amendment  shall  be  five  dollars. 

Dissolution. 

SECTION  23.  A  farmland  bank  may  be  dissolved  by  vote  of 
its  shareholders,  representing  two  thirds  in  amount  of  the  shares 
issued  and  outstanding,  at  any  meeting  called  for  the  purpose 
after  due  notice  to  all  shareholders  in  accordance  with  the  pro- 
visions of  the  by-laws.  The  bank  shall  be  dissolved  in  accord- 
ance with  rules  and  regulations  prescribed  by  the  bank  com- 
missioner. In  case  of  dissolution,  after  all  obligations  of  the 
bank  have  been  paid,  or  due  provision  made  for  their  payment 
at  maturity,  the  remaining  assets  of  the  bank  available  for 
distribution  shall  be  distributed  between  the  borrowers  and 


shareholders  in  the  manner  hereinbefore  provided  for  the  dis- 
tribution of  surplus  earnings  of  the  corporation  between  the 
borrowers  and  shareholders.  In  the  event  that  the  original 
borrower  has  sold  the  mortgaged  .premises  and  the  purchaser  has 
assumed  and  agreed  to  pay  the  mortgage,  the  purchaser,  by  as- 
suming the  mortgage,  shall  succeed  to  all  rights  of  the  borrower 
and  shall  be  entitled  to  receive  any  share  of  the  borrower  in  any 
distribution  of  surplus,  and  in  any  distribution  of  assets  of  the 
corporation  in  dissolution. 


3.    CO-OPERATIVE  ASSOCIATIONS. 
ACTS  OF  1913,  CHAPTER  447. 
Co-operative  Associations. 

SECTION  1.  Seven  or  more  persons,  residents  of  the  common- 
wealth, may  associate  themselves  as  a  corporation,  association, 
society,  company  or  exchange,  for  the  purpose  of  conducting 
within  the  commonwealth  any  agricultural,  dairy  or  mercantile 
business  on  the  co-operative  plan.  The  word  "co-operative" 
shall  form  a  part  of  the  name  of  the  corporation,  and,  for  the 
purposes  of  this  act,  the  words  "association",  "company",  "ex- 
change", "society",  and  "union",  shall  have  the  same  significa- 
tion and  shall  import  a  corporation. 

Incorporation . 

SECTION  2.  The  corporation  shall  be  formed  in  the  manner 
prescribed  in,  and  be  subject  to,  the  provisions  of  chapter  four 
hundred  and  thirty-seven  of  the  acts  of  the  year  nineteen  hun- 
dred and  three,  and  all  acts  in  amendment  thereof  and  in  addi- 
tion thereto,  so  far  as  they  are  not  inconsistent  with  the  pro- 
visions of  this  act. 

Capital  Stock. 

SECTION  3  (as  superseded  by  1915,  118,  §  1).  The  capital  stock 
of  such  a  co-operative  corporation  shall  not  be  less  than  one  hun- 
dred dollars,  nor  more  than  one  hundred  thousand  dollars.  No 
stockholder  shall  own  shares  of  a  greater  par  value  than  one 
tenth  of  the  total  par  value  of  the  capital  stock,  nor  shall  any 
member  be  entitled  to  more  than  one  vote  on  any  subject  aris- 
ing in  the  management  of  the  corporation. 


70 


Investment  of  Reserve  Fund. 

SECTION  4.  At  any  regular  meeting,  or  at  any  duly  called 
special  meeting,  at  which  a  majority  of  all  its  stockholders  shall 
be  present,  a  corporation  organized  under  this  act  may  authorize 
the  investment  of  its  reserve  fund  or  any  part  thereof,  first,  in 
the  building  in  which  it  is  doing  business,  or,  second,  in  a  first 
mortgage  of  real  estate  owned  and  occupied  as  a  dwelling  by 
any  of  its  stockholders. 

Apportionment  of  Earnings. 

SECTION  5.  The  directors  of  every  such  corporation  shall  ap- 
portion the  earnings  of  the  corporation  in  the  following  manner: 

1.  They  shall  set  aside  annually  not  less  than  ten  per  cent  of 
the  net  profits  of  the  corporation  for  a  reserve  fund  until  there 
is  accumulated  in  said  reserve  fund  an  amount  not  less  than 
thirty  per  cent  of  the  paid-up  capital  stock. 

2.  They  shall  declare  and  pay  dividends  on  the  paid-up  capital 
stock  not  exceeding  five  per  cent  per  annum. 

Distribution  of  Earnings. 

SECTION  6  (as  amended  by  1 91 5,  118,  §  3).  1.  From  the  balance 
of  the  net  earnings  of  the  corporation  the  directors  may  appro- 
priate a  sum  not  exceeding  five  per  cent  of  the  annual  net  earn- 
ings to  be  used  in  teaching  co-operation. 

2.  The  directors  shall  distribute  the  remainder  of  such  earnings 
or  any  part  thereof  by  a  uniform  dividend  upon  the  amount  of 
purchases  or  sales  of  shareholders,  through  the  corporation,  and, 
if  the  directors  so  vote,  upon  the  amount  of  wages  which  have 
been  earned  and  paid  to  employees  except  that  in  the  case  of  a 
purchaser  who  is  not  a  shareholder,  but  who  desires  to  become 
a  shareholder,  a  dividend  of  one  half  the  uniform  dividend  may 
be  declared  upon  such  non-shareholder's  purchases  or  sales  and 
credited  to  him  on  account  of  the  purchase  of  stock  for  which 
he  may  subscribe.  In  productive  corporations,  including  cream- 
eries, canneries,  storages,  factories  and  the  like,  dividends  shall 
be  calculated  on  raw  material  delivered  to  the  corporation  in- 
stead of  on  goods  purchased.  If  the  corporation  be  both  a  pur- 
chasing and  a  selling  or  a  productive  concern,  the  dividends  may 
be  on  both  raw  material  and  on  goods  purchased.  The  profits 
or  net  earnings  of  such  corporation  shall  be  distributed  to  those 
entitled  thereto  at  such  times  as  the  by-laws  prescribe,  which 
shall  be  as  often  as  once  in  twelve  months. 


71 


Certificate  of  Organization  to  be  approved  and  filed. 

SECTION  7.  Any  co-operative  association  now  organized  by 
law  in  this  commonwealth  for  any  of  the  purposes  mentioned  in 
this  act,  and  qualified  so  to  do,  may  by  a  majority  vote  of  the 
stockholders  at  a  meeting  called  for  the  purpose  vote  to  accept 
the  provisions  of  this  act,  and  shall  thereupon  present  to  the 
commissioner  of  corporations  a  certificate,  signed  and  sworn  to 
by  its  secretary,  setting  forth  a  copy  of  said  vote,  the  date  of 
the  meeting  at  which  the  vote  was  passed,  and  such  further 
evidence  as  the  commissioner  may  require  of  its  legal  existence 
and  of  its  intention  to  accept  the  provisions  of  this  act.  The 
commissioner  shall  examine  the  certificate  and  evidence  of  or- 
ganization, and,  if  it  appears  that  the  provisions  of  law  have 
been  complied  with,  shall  so  certify,  and  shall  approve  the  cer- 
tificate by  his  endorsement  thereon,  and  thereupon  such  cor- 
poration shall  have  the  powers  and  privileges  and  be  subject 
to  the  duties  and  liabilities  of  corporations  formed  under  this 
act.  Upon  the  payment  of  a  fee  of  one  dollar  said  certificate 
shall  be  filed  in  the  office  of  the  secretary  of  the  commonwealth, 
who  shall  cause  it  and  the  endorsement  thereon  to  be  recorded. 

* 
Taking  Effect. 

SECTION  8.     This  act  shall  take  effect  upon  its  passage. 

Use  of  the  Word  "  Co-operative  "  restricted. 

SECTION  9  (added  by  G.  A.,  1915,  118,  §  £).  No  person,  partner- 
ship, association  or  corporation,  organized  or  doing  business  for 
profit,  except  corporations  formed  under  the  provisions  of  this  act, 
or  co-operative  banks  organized  under  chapter  one  hundred  and 
fourteen  of  the  Revised  Laws,  shall  hereafter  transact  business 
under  any  name  or  title,  which  contains  the  word  "co-operative". 
The  provisions  of  section  seventeen  of  chapter  five  hundred  and 
ninety  of  the  acts  of  the  year  nineteen  hundred  and  eight  shall 
apply  to  violations  of  this  section,  and  as  prescribed  therein, 
proceedings  shall  be  brought  against  any  person,  partnership, 
association  or  corporation  which  violates  the  provisions  of  this 
section.  Any  person,  partnership,  association  or  corporation  not 
organized  under  the  provisions  of  this  act,  transacting  business 
under  a  name  or  title  which  contains  the  word  "co-operative", 
shall  alter  the  said  name  or  title  to  comply  with  the  provisions 
of  this  act  within  ninety  days  after  its  passage. 


72 


Fee  for  Piling. 

SECTION  10  (added  by  G.  A.,  1915,  118,  §  0).  The  fee  for  filing 
and  recording  the  articles  of  organization  required  by  chapter 
four  hundred  and  forty-seven  of  the  acts  of  the  year  nineteen 
hundred  and  thirteen,  including  the  issuing  by  the  secretary  of 
the  commonwealth  of  the  certificate  of  incorporation,  shall  be 
one  twentieth  of  one  per  cent  of  the  total  amount  of  the  author- 
ized capital  stock  as  fixed  by  the  articles  of  organization,  but 
not  in  any  case  less  than  five  dollars. 


4.    COUNTY  FARM  BUREAUS. 

ACTS  OF  1914,  CHAPTER  707. 
Corporations  organized  to  promote  Agriculture  may  receive  County  Aid. 

SECTION  1.  Any  corporation  organized  under  the  laws  of  this 
commonwealth,  not  organized  for  profit  and  no  part  of  the  net 
income  of  which  shall  inure  for  the  benefit  of  stockholders,  hav- 
ing for  its  corporate  purpose  the  improvement  of  agriculture 
and  country  life,  which  shall  be  approved  by  the  Massachusetts 
Agricultural  College  and  by  the  county  commissioners  of  the 
county  in  which  it  is  located,  shall  be  eligible  to  receive  the 
county  aid  herein  authorized,  but  only  one  such  corporation  in 
each  county  shall  be  approved  for  this  purpose. 

Appointment  of  Advisers  in  Agriculture. 

SECTION  2.  Every  corporation  approved  under  the  provisions 
of  section  one  shall  appoint  and  maintain  one  or  more  advisers 
in  agriculture  and  country  life,  who  shall  be  appointed  by  the 
advisory  board  established  by  section  four  hereof,  and  who  shall 
hold  office  until  their  successors  are  appointed  and  qualified. 

Duties  of  Advisers. 

SECTION  3.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  said  advisers  to  advise 
and  consult  with  individuals  and  organizations  in  reference  to 
farming  methods,  to  assist  in  the  development  and  improvement 
of  agriculture  and  of  country  life,  to  give  instruction  in  the 
formation  of  co-operative  enterprises,  to  promote  better  busi- 
ness methods  among  farmers,  to  assist  in  promoting  more  satis- 
factory methods  of  marketing  farm  products,  and  to  perform 


73 

any  other  work  adapted  to  promote  the  agricultural  or  rural 
development  of  that  country.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  ad- 
visers to  keep  in  touch  with,  and  to  bring  to  their  assistance,  all 
agencies  in  the  commonwealth  or  elsewhere  that  will  enable  them 
to  utilize  the  latest  and  best  knowledge  in  the  furtherance  of 
their  work.  The  duties  of  the  advisers  shall  be  performed  under 
the  supervision  and  direction  of  said  advisory  board,  and  they 
shall  be  subject  to  such  rules  and  regulations  as  said  board  may 
prescribe. 

Establishment  of  Advisory  Boards. 

SECTION  4.  In  every  county  in  which  a  corporation  such  as 
that  described  in  section  one  is  organized,  there  shall  be  estab- 
lished an  advisory  board  of  seven  members,  consisting  of  three 
members  to  be  appointed  by  the  corporation,  three  by  the  county 
commissioners  of  said  county,  and  one  by  the  six  thus  chosen. 
It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  advisory  board  to  superintend  and 
direct  the  work  of  the  corporation  within  the  county,  and  it  shall 
have  power  to  appoint,  suspend  or  remove  agricultural  advisers 
appointed  pursuant  to  this  act. 

Finance  Boards;  Appointment,  Duties. 

SECTION  5.  In  every  such  county  there  shall  also  be  estab- 
lished a  finance  board,  which  shall  be  composed  of  two  mem- 
bers:—  one  appointed  by  the  county  commissioners  of  said 
county  and  one  by  the  said  corporation.  It  shall  be  the  duty 
of  the  finance  board  to  certify  from  time  to  time,  whenever  re- 
quested so  to  do  by  the  corporation,  to  the  county  treasurer  the 
sums  received  in  the  treasury  of  the  corporation  in  each  year, 
other  than  the  funds  appropriated  by  the  county.  It  shall  also 
be  the  dutyvof  the  said  board  to  consider  and  report  upon  the 
budget  of  the  corporation  as  provided  in  section  eight. 

Power  of  Appointment. 

SECTION  6.  The  power  of  appointment  herein  vested  in  the 
corporation  may  be  exercised  by  its  executive  committee;  or  if 
no  provision  is  made  in  its  by-laws  for  an  executive  committee, 
then  by  its  board  of  directors  or  other  board  exercising  powers 
corresponding  to  those  of  directors. 


74 


Amount  to  be  included  in  Annual  Estimate  of  County   Expenses. 

SECTION  7.  In  every  such  county,  the  county  commissioners 
shall  include  in  their  annual  estimate  of  county  expenses,  to  be 
raised  by  the  county  by  tax  levy  and  appropriated  by  the  general 
court,  such  sum  as  they  may  deem  proper  to  be  contributed  to 
said  corporation  for  the  purpose  of  defraying  the  expenses  of 
maintaining  said  adviser  or  advisers,  and  of  the  work  carried  on 
by  the  corporation:  provided,  however,  that  the  sum  so  contrib- 
uted shall  not  be  less  than  one  thousand  dollars,  nor  more  than 
the  amount  raised  annually  by  said  corporation  from  all  other 
sources.  The  sum  so  contributed  shall  be  paid  to  the  corporation 
upon  the  certificate  of  the  finance  board  showing  that  an  equal 
amount  has  been  received  in  the  treasury  of  the  corporation 
from  all  other  sources;  and  said  sum  shall  be  expended  in  said 
county  by  said  corporation  for  the  purposes  above  named. 

Estimates  of  Expenditures. 

SECTION  8.  Every  corporation  of  the  kind  described  in  section 
one  receiving  aid  under  the  provisions  of  this  act  shall  annually, 
in  the  month  of  December,  prepare  or  cause  to  be  prepared  a 
budget  containing  a  detailed  estimate  of  all  sums  required  to  be 
expended  by  it  for  its  corporate  purposes  during  the  ensuing 
year,  which  budget  shall  forthwith  be  transmitted  to  the  finance 
board.  The  finance  board  shall  estimate  what  sum  may  be 
proper  for  the  corporation  to  expend  during  said  year  for  its 
corporate  purposes,  and  shall  submit  the  estimate,  on  or  before 
the  second  Wednesday  of  the  following  January,  to  the  county 
commissioners. 

Towns  may  vote  to  acquire  Real  Estate,  etc. 

SECTION  9,  Any  town  may,  at  a  legally  called  town  meeting, 
vote  to  acquire  by  purchase  or  otherwise  real  estate  for  the 
purpose  of  carrying  on,  under  the  direction  of  the  agricultural 
advisers  of  the  county,  agricultural  demonstration  work  within 
the  town,  and  may  appropriate  money  for  the  purposes  of  ac- 
quiring such  real  estate,  or  for  the  support  of  agricultural  demon- 
stration work  on  land  owned  by  the  town,  or  owned  by  any 
resident  of  the  town. 

Counties  to  which  this  Act  shall  apply. 

SECTION  10.     This  act  shall  apply  only  to  the  counties  of  the 

commonwealth  in  which  a  corporation  of  the  class  described  in 


75 

section  one  and  approved  by  the  Massachusetts  Agricultural 
College  and  by  the  county  commissioners  has  and  maintains  a 
principal  place  of  business:  provided,  that  counties  which  main- 
tain county  vocational  agricultural  schools,  shall  not  maintain 
county-aided  corporations  for  the  purposes  designated  in  this 
act. 

5.    DRAINAGE  OF  LOW  LANDS. 
REVISED  LAWS,  CHAPTER  195. 

IMPROVEMENT  OF  MEADOWS  AND  SWAMPS. 

Improvement  of  Low  Land. 

SECTION  1.  If  it  is  necessary  or  useful  to  drain  or  flow  a 
meadow,  swamp,  marsh,  beach  or  other  low  land  which  is  held 
by  several  proprietors  or  to  remove  obstructions  in  rivers  or 
streams  leading  therefrom,  such  improvements  may  be  made  as 
hereinafter  provided. 

1702,  11,  §  1.  R.  S.  115,  §  1.  P.  S.  189,  §  1. 

1795,  62,  §  1.  G.  S.  148,  §  1. 

See  Talbot  v.  Hudson,  16  Gray,  417  (see  page  141). 

Turner  v.  Nye,  154  Massachusetts,  579  (see  page  141). 

J.  B.  Smith  et  al.  v.  Amory  Smith  et  al.,  148  Massachusetts,  1. 

Petition. 

SECTION  2.  Such  proprietors,  or  a  majority  in  interest,  either 
in  value  or  area,  may  file  a  petition  in  the  superior  court  for  the 
county  in  which  the  land  or  any  part  thereof  lies,  setting  forth 
the  proposed  improvements  and  the  reasons  therefor.  The  court 
shall  thereupon  cause  notice  of  the  petition  to  be  given  in  such 
manner  as  it  may  order  to  any  proprietors  who  have  not  joined 
in  the  petition.  In  the  county  of  Dukes  County  the  probate 
court  shall  have  concurrent  jurisdiction  of  such  petition  and 
parties  shall  have  therein  the  same  rights  of  appeal  and  exception 
as  in  the  superior  court. 

1702.11,  §  1.  R.  S.  115,  §  2.  1869,387.  P.  S.  189,  §  2. 

1795,  62,  §  1.  G.  S.  148,  §  2.  1876,  228. 

Day  B.  Hurlburt,  11  Metcalf,  321  (see  page  142). 
Henry  v.  Thomas,  119  Mass.  583. 

Appointment  of  Commissioners. 

SECTION  3.  If,  upon  a  hearing,  the  court  finds  that  the  im- 
provements proposed  will  be  for  the  general  advantage  of. the 
proprietors,  it  may  appoint  three,  five  or  seven  commissioners, 
who  shall  be  sworn  to  the  faithful  performance  of  their  duties, 


76 

shall  view  the  land,  notify  parties  concerned,  hear  them  as  to 
the  best  manner  of  making  the  improvements  and  prescribe  the 
measures  to  be  adopted  for  such  purpose. 

1702,  11,  §  1.  R.  S.  115,  §§  3,  4.  P.  S.  189,  §  3. 

1795,  62,  §  1.  G.  S.  148,  §  3. 

Duties  and  Powers  of  Commissioners. 

SECTION  4.  The  commissioners  shall,  according  to  the  petition 
and  the  order  of  the  court,  cause  dams  or  dikes  to  be  erected  on 
the  land  at  such  places  and  in  such  manner  as  they  shall  direct, 
may  order  the  land  to  be  flowed  thereby  for  such  periods  of  each 
year  as  they  shall  consider  most  beneficial  and  may  cause  ditches 
to  be  opened  on  the  land  and  obstructions  in  any  rivers  or  streams 
leading  therefrom  to  be  removed.  They  shall  meet  from  time  to 
time  as  may  be  necessary  to  cause  the  work  to  be  completed 
according  to  their  directions. 

1795,  62,  §  1.  R.  S.  115,  §  5.  G.  S.  148,  §  4.  P.  S.  189,  §  4. 

Coomes  v.  Burt,  22  Pickering,  422. 

SECTION  5.  They  may  employ  suitable  persons  to  erect  the 
dams  or  dikes  or  to  perform  the  other  work  under  their  direction, 
for  such  reasonable  wages  as  they  may  agree  upon,  unless  the 
proprietors  themselves  do  the  same  in  such  time  and  manner  as 
the  commissioners  shall  order. 

1795,  62,  §  1.  R.  S.  115,  §  6.  G.  S.  148,  §  5.  P.  S.  189,  §  5. 

Assessment  of  Expenses. 

SECTION  6.  They  shall  apportion  and  assess  the  whole  charge 
and  expense  of  the  improvements  and  of  executing  the  commis- 
sion upon  the  proprietors  of  the  land,  according  to  the  quantity, 
quality  and  situation  of  each  person's  part  thereof  and  to  the 
benefit  that  he  will  derive  from  the  improvements. 

1702,  11,  §  1.  R.  S.  115,  §  7.  P.  S.  189,  §  6. 

1795,  62,  §  2.  G.  S.  148,  §  6. 

Collection  of  Assessments. 

SECTION  7.  They  may  appoint  a  collector  of  the  assessments, 
and  shall  give  him  a  warrant  to  collect,  pay  over  and  account 
for  the  same  to  such  person  as  they  may  appoint.  The  collector 
shall  have  the  same  power  and  proceed  in  like  manner  in  collect- 
ing the  assessments  as  is  provided  for  the  collection  of  town  taxes. 

1702,  11,  §  1.  R.  S.  115,  §  8.  P.  S.  189,  §  7. 

1795,  62,  §  2.  G.  S.  148,  §  7. 

Upton  v.  Holden,  5  Metcalf,  360. 

Wright  v.  Leonard,  4  Gray,  150  (see  page  142). 


77 

SECTION  8.  If  the  collector  neglects,  for  twenty  days  after 
being  so  required  by  the  commissioners,  to  account  for  and  pay 
over  the  money  he  has  collected,  he  shall  be  liable  to  the  commis- 
sioners in  an  action  of  contract  for  the  whole  amount  committed 
to  him  for  collection;  and  the  money  so  recovered,  after  deduct- 
ing the  expenses  of  recovery,  shall  be  applied  and  accounted  for 
by  the  commissioners  as  if  it  had  been  collected  and  paid  over 
by  the  collector  pursuant  to  his  warrant. 

1795,  62,  §  2.  R.  S.  115,  §  9.  G.  S.  148,  §  8.  P.  S.  189,  §  8. 

Compensation. 

SECTION  9.  The  compensation  of  the  commissioners  shall  be 
determined  by  the  court,  and  that  of  the  collector  shall  be  agreed 
upon  between  him  and  the  commissioners. 

1702,  11,  §  2.  G.  S.  148,  §  9.  P.  S.  189,  §  9. 

R.  S.  115,  §  10.  1795,  62,  §  3. 

Commissioners'  Return. 

SECTION  10.  The  commissioners  shall,  as  soon  as  may  be 
after  the  completion  of  the  business,  make  a  return  to  the  court 
of  their  doings  under  the  commission,  including  an  account  of  all 
money  assessed  and  collected  by  their  order  and  of  the  disburse- 
ment thereof. 

1795,  62,  §  3.  R.  S.  115,  §  11.  G.  S.  148,  §  10.  P.  S.  189,  §  10. 

Proprietors  on  Charles  v.  Proprietors  on  Neponset,  7  Pickering,  207. 

Apportionment  between  Tenant  and  Remainderman. 

SECTION  11.  If  the  commissioners  find  that  a  part  of  the  land 
is  held  by  a  tenant  for  life  or  years,  they  shall  apportion  and 
assess  the  expense  upon  the  tenant  and  the  remainderman  or 
reversioner,  unless  the  parties  agree  on  an  apportionment;  and 
every  such  tenant,  remainderman  and  reversioner  shall  be  con- 
sidered a  proprietor. 

1795,  62,  §  4.  R.  S.  115,  §  12.  G.  S.  148,  §  11.  P.  S.  189,  §  11. 

Land  Subject  to  Mortgage. 

SECTION  12.  A  mortgagor  or  mortgagee  in  possession  shall  be 
considered  a  proprietor,  and  all  amounts  paid  by  a  mortgagee  by 
order  of  the  commissioners  shall  be  allowed  to  him  under  the 
provisions  of  section  twenty  of  chapter  one  hundred  and  eighty- 
seven. 

1795,  62,  §  4.  R.  S.  115,  §  13.  G.  S.  148,  §  12.  P.  S.  189,  §  12. 


78 


Commissioners  may  make  or  open  Dams,  etc. 

SECTION  13.  If  the  commissioners  find  it  necessary  or  expe- 
dient to  reduce  or  raise  the  water  to  obtain  a  view  of  the  land  or 
for  the  more  convenient  or  expeditious  removal  of  obstructions, 
they  may  open  the  flood  gates  of  any  mill,  or  make  other  needful 
passages  through  or  around  the  dam  thereof,  or  erect  a  tempo- 
rary dam  on  the  land  of  a  person  who  is  not  a  party  to  the  pro- 
ceedings, and  may  maintain  such  dam  or  passages  for  the  water 
as  long  as  may  be  necessary  for  such  purposes. 

1745-46,  16,  §§  1,  4.  R.  S.  115,  §  14.  P.  S.  189,  §  13. 

1795,  62,  §  5.  G.  S.  148,  §  13. 

Damages. 

SECTION  14.  Damages  so  caused  shall  be  determined  by  the 
commissioners,  unless  agreed  on  between  them  and  the  parties, 
and  shall  be  paid  by  the  commissioners  out  of  the  money  to  be 
assessed  and  collected  by  them  as  before  provided. 

1745^6,  16,  §  2.  R.  S.  115,  §  15.  P.  S.  189,  §  14. 

1795,  62,  §  5.  G.  S.  148,  §  14. 

Notice  before  erecting  or  opening  Dam,  etc. 

SECTION  15.  The  commissioners,  before  proceeding  to  open 
flood  gates,  or  to  make  other  passages  for  water  through  or 
around  a  dam  or  to  erect  a  dam  on  the  land  of  a  person  who  is 
not  a  party  to  the  proceedings,  shall  give  him  reasonable  notice 
in  writing  of  their  intention.  If  such  person  appeals  from  their 
decision  and  gives  notice, in  writing  of  his  appeal  to  the  commis- 
sioners or  to  any  of  them,  they  shall  suspend  all  proceedings 
upon  his  land  until  the  appeal  is  determined,  if  it  is  entered  at 
the  return  day  next  after  the  expiration  of  seven  days  from  the 
time  of  claiming  the  same. 

R.  S.  115,  §  18.  G.  S.  148,  §  17.  P.  S.  189,  §  15.  1885,  384,  §  5. 

Appeal. 

SECTION  16.  If  a  party  to  the  proceedings  or  a  person  other- 
wise interested  therein  or  affected  thereby  is  aggrieved  by  any 
doings  of  the  commissioners,  he  may  enter  an  appeal  in  the  court 
in  which  the  petition  was  filed  at  the  return  day  next  following 
that  at  which  the  return  of  the  commissioners  was  filed;  and 
the  court  may  affirm,  reverse  or  alter  any  adjudication  or  order 
of  the  commissioners,  and  may  make  any  appropriate  order. 
Questions  of  fact  arising  upon  the  appeal  shall,  upon  motion  of 


79 

either  party  be  tried  by  a  jury  in  such  manner  as   the  court 
orders. 

1702,  11,  §  4.  1795,  62,  §  6.  G.  S.  148,  §§  15,  16.          1885,  384,  §  5. 

1745^6,  16,  §  4.  R.  S.  115,  §§  16,  17.         P.  S.  189,  §§  16,  17. 

Day  v.  Hurlburt,  11  Met.  321  (see  page  142). 


CONSTRUCTION  OF  ROADS  TO  SWAMPS. 
Roads  to  Swamps. 

SECTION  17.  A  city,  town,  person  or  corporation  owning  low 
land,  ponds,  swamps,  quarries,  mines  or  mineral  deposits,  which, 
on  account  of  adjacent  land  belonging  to  other  persons  or  occu- 
pied as  a  highway,  cannot  be  approached,  worked,  drained,  or 
used  in  the  ordinary  manner  without  crossing  such  land  or  high- 
way, may  construct  roads,  drains,  ditches,  tunnels  and  railways 
thereto  as  hereinafter  provided. 

1855,  104,  §  1.  G.  S.  148,  §  19.  P.  S.  189,  §  19. 

Sherman  v.  Tobey,  3  Allen,  7. 

Petition  and  Bond. 

SECTION  18.  The  party  which  desires  to  make  such  improve- 
ments shall  file  a  petition  therefor  with  the  county  commissioners 
for  the  county  in  which  the  land  lies,  setting  forth  the  names  of 
the  persons  interested,  if  known  to  the  petitioner,  and  also  in 
detail  the  nature  of  the  proposed  improvement  and  the  situation 
of  the  adjoining  land.  Such  petition  shall  be  accompanied  by  a 
bond  satisfactory  to  said  commissioners  for  the  payment  of  the 
expenses  to  be  incurred  in  the  prosecution  of  the  petition. 

1855,  104,  §  2.  G.  S.  148,  §  20.  P.  S.  189,  §  20. 

Notice. 

SECTION  19.  The  commissioners,  at  their  first  meeting  after 
the  filing  of  the  petition  and  bond,  shall  order  notice  of  the  time 
and  place  of  meeting  to  consider  the  petition  to  be  published 
once  in  each  of  three  successive  weeks  in  a  newspaper,  if  any, 
published  in  the  county;  otherwise,  in  a  newspaper  published  in 
an  adjacent  county.  They  shall  also  give  notice  thereof  to  the 
clerk  of  each  city  or  town  in  which  the  land  lies. 

1855,  104,  §  3.  G.  S.  148,  §  21.  P.  S.  189,  §  21. 


80 


Powers  of  Commissioners. 

SECTION  20.  If,  after  examination,  inspection  and  a  hearing, 
they  find  that  the  improvements  prayed  for  are  necessary,  they 
shall  so  lay  out  and  establish  the  same  as  to  do  as  little  injury  as 
practicable,  assess  the  damages  sustained  by  the  proprietor  of 
the  adjacent  land  and  apportion  them  among  all  parties  to  be 
benefited  according  to  the  benefits  each  will  receive.  Such  award 
shall  be  conclusive  upon  the  parties  charged  with  such  payment 
unless  an  appeal  is  taken  within  one  year. 

1855,  104,  §  4.  G.  S.  148,  §  22.  P.  S.  189,  §  22. 

Appeal. 

SECTION  21.  A  party  who  is  aggrieved  by  the  award  may 
appeal  therefrom,  and  thereupon  like  proceedings  shall  be  had  as 
are  provided  in  chapter  forty-eight. 

1855,  104,  §  6.  G.  S.  148,  §  23.  P.  S.  189,  23. 

Repairs  of  Improvements. 

SECTION  22.  If  it  is  necessary  to  repair  an  improvement  so 
made,  a  majority  of  the  persons  benefited  by  it  may  cause  such 
repairs  to  be  made,  and  may  compel  contribution  on  the  basis  of 
the  award  from  each  person  benefited. 

1855,  104,  §  5.  G.  S.  148,  §  24.  P.  S.  189,  §  24. 

Petition  to  Mayor,  etc.,  or  Selectmen. 

SECTION  23.  If  the  land  mentioned  in  section  seventeen  lies 
entirely  in  one  city  or  town,  the  petition  may  be  made  to  the 
mayor  and  aldermen  or  selectmen  thereof,  who  shall  proceed 
thereon  in  all  respects  as  above  provided  for  county  commis- 
sioners, except  that  they  need  not  give  notice  to  their  city  or 
town.  Such  petition  shall  be  filed  in  the  office  of  the  city  or 
town  clerk  before  proceedings  are  had  thereon;  and  the  petition 
with  the  order  or  award  thereon  shall  be  recorded  in  said  office 
within  two  months  after  the  order  or  award  has  been  made. 

1857,  292,  §§  1,  3.  G.  S.  148,  §§  25,  26.  P.  S.  189,  §§  25,  26. 


SECTION  24.  The  mayor  and  aldermen  or  selectmen  shall  each 
receive  two  dollars  for  each  day's  services  upon  such  petition  and 
the  city  or  town  clerk  shall  receive  for  recording  a  petition, 


81 

order  or  award  thereon  the  same  fees  as  are  provided  for  registers 
of  deeds  by  section  twenty-nine  of  chapter  two  hundred  and  four. 

1857,  292,  §§  3,  4.  G.  S.  148,  §  27.  P.  S.  189,  §  27. 

Complaint  to  County  Commissioners. 

SECTION  25.  A  party  aggrieved  by  such  order  or  award,  or  by 
the  refusal  of  the  mayor  and  aldermen  or  selectmen  to  make  such 
order  or  award,  may,  within  one  year  thereafter,  complain  to  the 
county  commissioners,  who  shall  thereupon  proceed  in  all  re- 
spects as  though  the  petition  had  been  originally  filed  with  them. 

1857,  292,  §  2.  G.  S.  148,  §  28.  P.  S.  189,  §  28. 

ACTS  OF  1913,  CHAPTER  759. 

RECLAMATION  OF  WET  LAND. 
Commonwealth  may  acquire  Land  for  Purpose  of  Reclamation. 

SECTION  1.  The  state  board  of  agriculture  and  the  state  board 
of  health,  acting  as  a  joint  board,  are  hereby  authorized  with  the 
approval  of  the  governor  and  council,  to  purchase  or  take  by 
right  of  eminent  domain  in  the  name  of  the  commonwealth  for 
the  purposes  of  this  act,  any  tract  or  tracts  of  wet  land,  except 
salt  marshes,  together  with  such  dry  lands,  if  any,  as  may  be 
necessary  for  access  thereto.  In  carrying  out  the  provisions  of 
this  act  the  said  joint  board  may,  in  its  discretion,  determine 
that  any  of  the  powers  and  duties  hereby  conferred  or  imposed 
shall  be  exercised  and  performed  by  either  one  of  the  two  boards 
composing  the  joint  board. 

Damages. 

SECTION  2.  The  said  joint  board  shall  estimate  and  determine, 
as  soon  as  may  be,  all  damages  sustained  by  any  person  or  cor- 
poration by  the  taking  of  land,  or  any  right  therein,  under  au- 
thority of  this  act,  and  the  same  shall  be  paid  from  the  fund 
hereinafter  provided;  but  anyone  aggrieved  by  such  determina- 
tion may  have  his  damages  assessed  by  a  jury  of  the  superior 
court  in  the  manner  provided  by  law  with  respect  to  damages 
sustained  by  reason  of  the  laying  out  of  ways.  If,  upon  trial, 
damages  are  increased  beyond  the  award  of  the  board,  the 
aggrieved  party  shall  recover  costs;  otherwise  such  party  shall 
pay  costs;  and  costs  shall  be  taxed  as  in  civil  cases.  No  suit 
for  such  damages  shall  be  brought  after  the  expiration  of  two 
years  from  the  date  of  the  recording  of  the  taking,  as  required 
by  the  following  section. 


82 


Description  of  Land  taken  to  be  recorded. 

SECTION  3.  Within  sixty  days  after  any  land,  or  right  therein, 
is  taken  under  this  act,  the  said  joint  board  shall  file  and  cause 
to  be  recorded  in  the  proper  registry  of  deeds  a  description 
thereof  sufficiently  accurate  for  its  identification,  with  a  state- 
ment of  the  purpose  for  which  the  same  is  taken,  signed  by  a 
majority  of  the  said  joint  board;  and  upon  such  filing  title  to  the 
land  or  rights  so  taken  shall  vest  in  the  commonwealth. 

Labor  of  Prisoners  may  be  employed. 

SECTION  4.  The  said  joint  board,  acting  through  such  agent 
or  agents  as  it  may  appoint,  shall  drain  and  reclaim  lands  ac- 
quired under  this  act,  and  for  this  purpose  may  purchase  ma- 
chinery and  other  necessary  equipment,  and  may  execute  such 
contracts  as  the  governor  and  council  shall  approve.  So  far  as 
is  practicable,  the  labor  of  prisoners  shall  be  employed  in  re- 
claiming the  said  lands,  under  such  regulations  and  conditions  as 
may  be  prescribed  by  the  prison  commissioners;  and  it  is  hereby 
made  the  duty  of  the  prison  commissioners  to  furnish  such  labor, 
upon  request  of  the  said  joint  board,  whenever  it  is  practicable 
for  them  to  do  so.  The  cost  of  transportation  of  prisoners  to 
and  from  the  place  of  labor  and  the  cost  of  providing  them  with 
necessary  meals  while  so  employed  shall  be  paid  from  the  fund 
herein  provided  for. 

Cultivation  of  Reclaimed  Land. 

SECTION  5  (as  amended  by  1914,  596,  §  2).  When  said  lands,  or 
any  convenient  part  thereof,  shall  have  been  drained  and  re- 
claimed, the  said  joint  board  shall  cause  the  same  to  be  culti- 
vated for  not  less  than  two  successive  seasons,  in  such  manner 
as  in  the  opinion  of  the  board  will  best  demonstrate  the  value 
thereof  for  agricultural  uses.  The  products  of  cultivation,  except 
hay  sold  in  the  bale,  shall  not  be  sold  in  open  market,  but  shall 
be  used  for  the  supply  of  public  institutions,  and  such  institu- 
tions shall  pay  to  the  joint  board  such  sums  for  the  said  prod- 
ucts as  they  would  pay  if  the  same  were  purchased  in  open  mar- 
ket, and  the  sums  so  received  shall  be  added  to  the  sum  herein 
provided  for. 

Wet  Lands  Reclamation  Fund. 

SECTION  6.  The  said  joint  board  shall  thereafter,  at  such 
time  or  times  as  it  shall  deem  expedient,  offer  such  lands  for  sale, 
in  whole  or  in  part,  at  a  price  not  less  than  the  cost  of  the  land 


83 

plus  the  cost  of  reclaiming  the  same.  Any  sums  received  from 
such  sales  shall  be  paid  into  the  treasury  of  the  commonwealth 
and  credited  to  the  ordinary  revenue  until  the  total  amount 
expended  under  the  provisions  of  this  act  has  been  refunded, 
after  which  the  proceeds  shall  be  credited  to  a  fund  to  be  known 
as  the  Wet  Lands  Reclamation  Fund  and  shall  be  used  for  the 
reclamation  of  other  tracts  in  the  manner  herein  provided. 

Expenditures. 

SECTION  7.  In  carrying  out  the  provisions  of  this  act,  the  said 
joint  board  may  expend  a  sum  not  exceeding  fifteen  thousand 
dollars  from  the  treasury  of  the  commonwealth.  This  sum  shall 
be  in  addition  to  any  amounts  received  from  the  sale  of  products 
as  aforesaid. 

ACTS  OF  1914,  CHAPTER  596. 
Purchase  of  Wet  Lands  for  Reclamation. 

SECTION  1.  The  joint  board  established  by  chapter  seven 
hundred  and  fifty-nine  of  the  acts  of  the  year  nineteen  hundred 
and  thirteen  may,  in  its  discretion,  in  order  further  to  carry  out 
the  purposes  of  said  chapter,  purchase  any  wet  lands  at  a  price 
not  exceeding  the  assessed  valuation  thereof,  and  may  accept  on 
behalf  of  the  commonwealth  gifts  of  land  to  be  drained  and 
reclaimed  as  therein  provided.  The  sellers  or  donors  of  such 
lands  may  reserve  the  right  to  buy  back  the  land  at  any  time 
within  two  years  upon  paying  the  price  originally  paid  by  the 
commonwealth,  together  with  the  amount  expended  in  improve- 
ments and  maintenance,  and  interest  at  the  rate  of  four  per 
cent  per  annum,  but  in  the  absence  of  a  provision  to  that  effect 
in  the  deed  of  purchase  or  gift  the  former  owner  shall  not  have 
such  right,  and  the  lands  so  acquired  shall  be  offered  for  sale,  in 
whole  or  in  part,  by  the  said  joint  board,  at  such  time  or  times 
as  it  shall  deem  expedient,  at  a  price  not  less  than  the  cost  of  the 
land  plus  the  cost  of  reclaiming  the  same,  and  interest  at  the 
rate  of  four  per  cent  per  annum. 

Expenditure  authorized. 

SECTION  3.  In  carrying  out  the  provisions  of  this  act,  and  of 
said  chapter  seven  hundred  and  fifty-nine  of  the  acts  of  the  year 
nineteen  hundred  and  thirteen,  the  joint  board  may  expend  a 
sum  not  exceeding  ten  thousand  dollars,  from  the  treasury  of 


84 

the  commonwealth,  in  addition  to  the  sums  authorized  by  sec- 
tion seven  of  said  chapter. 

REVISED  LAWS,  CHAPTER  196. 

CBANBERRY  LAND  AND  ICE  PONDS. 
Dam  to  flow  Cranberry  Land. 

SECTION  39.  An  owner  or  lessee  of  land  appropriated  or  which 
he  desires  to  appropriate  to  the  cultivation  and  growth  of  the 
cranberry  may  erect  and  maintain  a  dam  upon  and  across  a 
stream  to  flow  and  irrigate  said  land,  subject  to  the  provisions 
of  this  chapter  so  far  as  applicable;  but  he  shall  not  erect  and 
maintain  a  dam  across  a  navigable  stream  or  across  the  outlet  of 
a  great  pond,  without  a  license  therefor  from  the  board  of  harbor 
and  land  commissioners. 

1866,  206.  P.  S.  190,  §  48.  1892,  55. 

Hinckley  v.  Nickerson,  117  Mass.  213  (see  page  167). 
Blackwell  et  al.  v.  Phinney  et  al,  126  Mass.  458. 
Howes  v.  Crush,  131  Mass.  207  (see  page  165). 
Turner  v.  Nye,  154  Mass.  579  (see  page  141). 

Apportionment  of  Expense. 

SECTION  40.  If  a  dam  has  been  so  erected  or  maintained  or  if 
a  person  has  at  his  own  expense  made,  kept  open  or  repaired  any 
ditches  or  drains  for  the  improvement  or  cultivation  of  such 
tract  of  land,  any  owner  or  lessee  of  a  like  tract,  who  uses  such 
dam,  ditches  or  drains  or  who  by  more  remote  means  receives 
benefit  thereby  for  the  flowing,  irrigating  or  draining  of  such 
last-mentioned  tract,  shall  pay  to  the  person  who  has  erected  or 
maintained  such  dam  or  incurred  such  expense  his  proportionate 
part  thereof,  which  shall  be  determined  by  the  selectmen  of  the 
town  as  provided  in  sections  four  and  thirty-seven  to  forty, 
inclusive,  of  chapter  forty-nine.  But  no  covenants  or  agreements 
by  or  between  the  owners  or  lessees  of  such  land  shall  be  affected 
by  the  provisions  of  this  section. 

1871,  163.  P.  S.  190,  §  49. 


Ice  Ponds. 

SECTION  41.  An  owner  or  lessee  of  land  which  is  used  for  an 
ice  pond  may  erect  and,  between  the  first  day  of  November  and 
the  first  day  of  March,  maintain  a  dam  across  a  stream  not 
navigable,  for  the  purpose  of  making  an  ice  pond  by  flowing 
adjoining  land,  subject  to  the  provisions  of  this  chapter,  so  far  as 
applicable,  if  he  annually  pays  to  the  owner  of  land  which  may 


85 

be  overflowed  or  injured  thereby  the  amount  of  the  tax  which 
may  from  time  to  time  be  assessed  on  such  land;  but  such  dam 
shall  not  be  erected  without  the  consent  of  all  of  the  owners  of 
the  land  which  would  be  flowed  by  it,  unless  the  person  or  cor- 
poration proposing  to  erect  it  shall  furnish  to  such  owners  as 
do  not  consent  to  the  erection  security,  satisfactory  to  them  or 
approved  by  a  justice  of  a  court  of  record  or  by  a  master  in 
chancery,  for  the  payment  of  any  damages  which  may  be  caused 
by  flowing  the  land  of  such  owners. 

1898,  480. 


IV.     GAME  AND   DOG  STATUTES. 

1.     DEER. 

ACTS  OF  1913,  CHAPTER  529. 
Taking  or  Killing  of  Deer  regulated. 

SECTION  1  (as  amended  by  1913,  744,  and  1914,  453).  It  shall 
be  unlawful,  except  as  hereinafter  provided,  to  hunt,  pursue, 
wound  or  kill  a  deer,  or  to  sell  or  offer  for  sale,  or  to  have  in 
possession  for  the  purpose  of  sale,  a  deer  or  the  flesh  of  a  deer 
captured  or  killed  in  this  commonwealth:  provided,  that  this 
act  shall  not  apply  to  a  tame  deer  belonging  to  any  person  and 
kept  on  his  own  premises;  and  provided,  further,  that  any 
farmer  or  other  person  may,  on  land  owned  or  occupied  by  him, 
or,  with  the  consent  of  the  owner,  upon  land  adjacent  thereto, 
pursue,  wound  or  kill  any  deer  which  he  has  reasonable  cause  to 
believe  has  damaged  or  is  about  to  damage  crops,  fruit  or  orna- 
mental trees,  except  grass  growing  on  uncultivated  land;  and  he 
may  authorize  any  member  of  his  family,  or  any  person  em- 
ployed by  him  so  to  pursue,^  wound  or  kill  a  deer  under  the 
circumstances  above  specified.  In  the  event  of  the  wounding  or 
killing  of  a  deer  as  aforesaid,  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  person 
by  whom  or  under  whose  direction  the  deer  was  wounded  or 
killed  to  mail  or  otherwise  transmit  within  twenty-four  hours 
thereafter  to  the  commissioners  on  fisheries  and  game  a  report  in 
writing  signed  by  him  of  the  facts  relative  to  the  said  wounding 
or  killing.  The  said  report  shall  state  the  time  and  place  of  the 
wounding  or  killing,  and  the  kind  of  tree  or  crop  injured  or 
destroyed,  or  about  to  be  injured  or  destroyed,  by  the  deer. 
It  shall  be  unlawful  to  sell  or  offer  for  sale  the  whole  or  any  part 
of  a  deer  killed  under  the  aforesaid  provision. 


Open  Season  established. 

SECTION  2.  Any  person  who  is  duly  authorized  or  licensed  to 
hunt  in  this  commonwealth  according  to  the  provisions  of  law, 
may,  between  sunrise  of  the  third  Monday  of  November  and 
sunset  of  the  following  Saturday,  hunt,  pursue,  take  or  kill  by 
the  use  of  a  shotgun,  a  wild  deer,  subject  to  the  following  restric- 
tions and  provisions:  —  No  person  shall  kill  more  than  one  deer 
under  the  provisions  of  this  section  or  have  in  possession  more 


87 

than  one  deer  killed  under  the  provisions  of  this  section.  No 
deer  shall  be  hunted,  taken  or  killed  on  land  posted  in  accordance 
with  the  provisions  of  section  fourteen  of  chapter  ninety-two  of 
the  Revised  Laws,  or  on  land  under  the  control  of  the  metro- 
politan park  commission  or  of  the  metropolitan  water  and  sewer- 
age board,  or  in  violation  of  any  city  ordinance  or  town  by-law, 
or  in  any  state  reservation,  or  by  any  method  prohibited  by  law. 
It  shall  be  unlawful  to  make,  set  or  use  any  trap,  salt  lick  or 
other  device  for  the  purpose  of  ensnaring,  enticing,  taking,  in- 
juring or  killing  a  deer.  Whoever  wounds  or  kills  a  deer  under 
the  provisions  of  this  section  shall  make  a  report  in  writing, 
signed  by  him,  and  mailed  or  otherwise  transmitted  within 
twenty-four  hours  of  such  wounding  or  killing,  to  the  commis- 
sioners on  fisheries  and  game,  stating  the  facts  relative  to  the 
wounding  or  killing. 

Not  to  affect  Certain  Provisions  of  Law. 

SECTION  3.  Nothing  in  this  act  shall  be  construed  as  affecting 
the  provisions  of  section  eighteen  of  chapter  ninety-two  of  the 
Revised  Laws,  as  amended  by  chapter  two  hundred  and  forty- 
five  of  the  acts  of  the  year  nineteen  hundred  and  five. 

Repeal. 

SECTION  4.  Section  seventeen  of  chapter  ninety-two  of  the 
Revised  Laws,  as  amended  by  chapter  three  hundred  and  seven 
of  the  acts  of  the  year  nineteen  hundred  and  seven,  and  by  chap- 
ter three  hundred  and  seventy-seven  of  the  acts  of  the  year 
nineteen  hundred  and  eight,  and  by  chapter  three  hundred  and 
ninety-six  of  the  acts  of  the  year  nineteen  hundred  and  nine  is 
hereby  repealed;  chapter  five  hundred  and  forty -five  of  the  acts 
of  the  year  nineteen  hundred  and  ten  and  chapter  three  hundred 
and  eighty-eight  of  the  acts  of  the  year  nineteen  hundred  and 
twelve  are  also  hereby  repealed;  but  the  said  repeals  shall  not 
affect  any  suit  or  other  proceeding  now  pending. 

Penalty. 

SECTION  5.  Any  violation  of  any  provision  of  this  act  shall  be 
punished  by  a  fine  not  exceeding  one  hundred  dollars  for  each 
offence. 


88 


ACTS  OP  1913,  CHAPTER  744. 

PROTECTION  OF  MOOSE. 

SECTION  1.  The  provisions  of  this  act  authorizing  the  killing 
of  deer  under  the  circumstances  and  at  the  times  specified  above 
shall  not  apply  to  moose;  and  it  shall  be  unlawful  in  this  com- 
monwealth to  hunt,  pursue,  take,  wound  or  kill  a  moose  at  any 
time,  or  to  sell,  offer  for  sale,  or  to  have  in  possession  the  flesh  of 
a  moose  captured  or  killed  in  this  commonwealth. 

REVISED  LAWS,  CHAPTER  92,  §  18,  AS  AMENDED  BY  ACTS  OF  1913,  CHAPTER  552. 

PROTECTION  OF  DEER  FROM  DOGS. 
Hunting,  etc.,  of  Deer  by  Dogs  prohibited. 

SECTION  18.  Any  of  the  commissioners  on  fisheries  and  game, 
or  their  deputies,  or  any  member  of  the  district  police,  or  any 
officer  qualified  to  serve  criminal  process,  may  kill  a  dog  found 
chasing  or  hunting  deer  at  any  time  if  the  dog  is  used  for  such 
purpose  with  the  knowledge  and  consent  of  his  owner  or  keeper, 
and  the  owner  or  keeper  of  the  dog  shall  be  punished  by  a  fine 
of  fifty  dollars.  If  a  dog  has  twice  been  found  chasing  or  hunting 
deer,  and  if  the  owner  or  keeper  of  the  dog  has  so  been  notified 
on  each  occasion  by  the  commissioners  on  fisheries  and  game,  it 
shall  be  a  presumption  of  law,  if  the  same  dog  is  thereafter  found 
chasing  or  hunting  deer,  that  such  chasing  or  hunting  was  with 
the  knowledge  and  consent  of  the  said  owner  or  keeper,  unless 
the  contrary  is  shown  by  evidence. 

ACTS  OF  1903,  CHAPTER  407,  AS  AMENDED  BY  ACTS  OF  1912,  CHAPTER  438. 

DAMAGES  FROM  DEER  Loss. 
Payment  of  Damages  caused  by  Deer. 

SECTION  1.  Whoever  suffers  loss  by  the  eating,  browsing  or 
trampling  of  his  fruit  or  ornamental  trees,  vegetables,  produce  or 
crops  by  wild  deer  may,  if  the  damage  is  done  in  a  city,  inform 
the  officer  of  police  of  said  city  who  shall  be  designated  to  receive 
such  information  by  the  mayor,  and  if  the  damage  is  done  in  a 
town,  may  inform  the  chairman  of  the  selectmen  of  the  town 
wherein  the  damage  was  done,  who  shall  proceed  to  the  premises 
where  the  damage  was  done  and  determine  whether  the  same  was 
inflicted  by  deer,  and  if  so,  appraise  the  amount  thereof  if  it  does 
not  exceed  twenty  dollars.  If,  in  the  opinion  of  said  officer  of 
police  or  chairman,  the  amount  of  said  damage  exceeds  twenty 


89 

dollars,  he  shall  appoint  two  disinterested  persons,  who,  with 
himself,  shall  appraise  under  oath  the  amount  thereof.  The  said 
officer  of  police  or  chairman  shall  return  a  certificate  of  the 
damages  found,  except  in  the  county  of  Suffolk,  to  the  treasurer 
of  the  county  in  which  the  damage  is  done,  within  ten  days  after 
such  appraisal  is  made.  The  treasurer  shall  thereupon  submit 
the  same  to  the  county  commissioners,  who,  within  thirty  days, 
shall  examine  all  such  bills,  and  if  any  doubt  exists,  may  summon 
the  appraisers  and  all  parties  interested  and  make  such  exam- 
ination as  they  may  think  proper,  and  he  shall  transmit  such 
bills,  properly  approved,  to  the  auditor  of  accounts,  and  they, 
including  the  cost  of  appraisal,  shall  be  paid  out  of  the  treasury 
of  the  commonwealth  in  the  same  manner  as  other  claims  against 
the  commonwealth.  In  the  county  of  Suffolk  the  certificate  of 
damages  shall  be  returned  to  the  treasurer  of  the  city  or  town  in 
which  the  damage  is  done,  who  shall  exercise  and  perform  the 
rights  and  duties  hereby  conferred  and  imposed  upon  the  county 
commissioners  in  other  counties.  The  appraisers  shall  receive 
from  the  commonwealth  one  dollar  each  for  every  such  examina- 
tion made  by  them,  and  shall  receive  twenty  cents  a  mile,  one 
way,  for  their  necessary  travel. 

2.    DOG  DAMAGES. 
REVISED  LAWS,  CHAPTER  102. 

Damage  by  Dogs. 

SECTION  146.  The  owner  or  keeper  of  a  dog  shall  be  liable  in 
an  action  of  tort  to  a  person  injured  by  it  in  double  the  amount 
of  damages  sustained  by  him. 

1791,  38,  §  4.  1798,  54,  §  3.  R.  S.  58,  §  13.  P.  S.  102,  §  93. 

1797,  53,  §  5.  1812,  146,  §  3.  G.  S.  88,  §  59. 

Buddington  v.  Shearer,  20  Pick.  477  (see  page  145). 

McCarthy  v.  Guild,  12  Met.  291  (see  page  146). 

Mitchell  v.  Clapp,  12  Gush.  278. 

Brewer  v.  Crosby,  11  Gray,  29  (see  page  145).    ' 

Sherman  v.  Favour,  1  Allen,  191  (see  page  145). 

Barrett  v.  Maiden  &  Melrose  R.R.  Co.,  3  Allen,  101. 

Pressey  v.  Wirth,  3  Allen,  191  (see  page  146). 

Le  Forest  v.  Tolman,  117  Mass.  109. 

Searles  v.  Ladd,  123  Mass.  580. 

Collingill  v.  Haverhill,  128  Mass.  218. 

White  v.  Lang,  128  Mass.  598. 

Hathaway  v.  Tinkham,  148  Mass.  85  (see  page  145). 

McLaughlin  v.  Kemp,  152  Mass.  7. 

AVhittemore  v.  Thomas,  153  Mass.  347. 

Galvin  v.  Parker,  154  Mass.  346. 

Boulester  v.  Parsons,  161  Mass.  182  (see  page  145). 

Raymond  v.  Hodgson,  161  Mass.  184. 

Boylan  v.  Everett,  172  Mass.  453. 


90 


When  Dogs  may  be  killed. 

SECTION  147.  Any  person  may  kill  a  dog  which  suddenly 
assaults  him  while  he  is  peaceably  walking  or  riding  outside  the 
enclosure  of  its  owner  or  keeper;  and  any  person  may  kill  a  dog 
found  out  of  the  enclosure  or  immediate  care  of  its  owner  or 
keeper,  worrying,  wounding  or  killing  neat  cattle,  sheep  or  lambs. 

1791,  38,  §  2.  R.  S.  58,  §  14.  G.  S.  88,  §  60.  P.  S.  102,  §  94. 

Nesbett  B.  Wilbur,  177  Mass.  200  (see  page  144). 

Complaint  as  to  Dangerous  Dogs. 

SECTION  148.  If  a  person  who  has  been  so  assaulted,  or  who 
finds  a  dog  strolling  outside  of  the  enclosure  or  immediate  care  of 
its  owner  or  keeper,  within  forty-eight  hours  after  such  assault  or 
finding  makes  oath  thereof  before  a  police,  district  or  municipal 
court  or  trial  justice  or  before  the  clerk  of  the  city  or  town  in 
which  the  owner  or  keeper  of  the  dog  dwells  and  that  he  suspects 
the  dog  to  be  dangerous  or  mischievous,  and  gives  notice  thereof 
to  its  owner  or  keeper  by  delivering  to  him  a  certificate  of  such 
oath  signed  by  such  court  or  justice  or  clerk,  the  owner  or  keeper 
shall  forthwith  kill  or  confine  such  dog;  and  if  he  neglects  so  to 
do  for  twenty-four  hours  after  such  notice,  he  shall  forfeit  ten 
dollars. 

1791,  38,  §  2.  R.  S.  58,  §  16.  G.  S.  88,  §  61.  P.  S.  102,  §  95. 

After  Notice,  any  Person  may  kill. 

SECTION  149.  If  such  dog  is  licensed  under  the  provisions  of 
this  chapter,  the  forfeiture  under  the  provisions  of  the  preceding 
section  shall  not  be  incurred  unless  the  dog  is  proved  to  be 
mischievous  or  dangerous.  Any  person  may  kill  a  licensed  dog 
which  has  been  proved  to  be  mischievous  or  dangerous  under  the 
provisions  of  this  section  if  it  is  again  found  strolling  outside  of 
the  enclosure  or  immediate  care  of  its  owner  or  keeper. 


1791,  38,  §  3.  G.  S.  88,  §  62.  1867,  130, §  14. 

R.  S.  58,  §  16.  1865,  197,  §  4.  P.  S.  102,  §  96. 


Liability  of  Owner  for  Further  Damage. 

SECTION  150.  If  a  dog,  after  such  notice  to  its  owner  or 
keeper,  by  such  assault  wounds  any  person  or  causes  him  to  be 
wounded,  or  worries,  wounds  or  kills  any  neat  cattle,  sheep  or 
lambs,  or  does  any  other  mischief,  the  owner  or  keeper  shall  be 


91 

liable  in  an  action  of  tort  to  the  person  injured  thereby  in  treble 
the  amount  of  damages  sustained  by  him. 

1791,  38,  §  4.  R.  S.  58,  §  17.  G.  S.  88,  §  63.  P.  S.  102,  §  97. 

Loss  from  Dogs  worrying  Sheep.     Payment  of  Certain  Damages,  etc. 

SECTION  151  (as  amended  by  1903,  100;  1904,  %83;  1911,  392). 
Whoever  suffers  loss  by  the  worrying,  maiming  or  killing  of  his 
sheep,  lambs,  fowls  or  other  domestic  animals  by  dogs,  outside 
the  enclosure  of  the  owners  or  keepers  of  such  dogs,  may,  if  the 
damage  is  done  in  a  city,  inform  the  officer  of  police  of  said  city 
who  shall  be  designated  to  receive  such  information  by  the  au- 
thority appointing  the  police,  and,  if  the  damage  is  done  in  a 
town,  may  inform  the  chairman  of  the  selectmen  of  the  town 
wherein  the  damage  was  done,  who  shall  proceed  to  the  premises 
where  the  damage  was  done  and  determine  whether  the  same  was 
inflicted  by  dogs,  and  if  so,  appraise  the  amount  thereof  if  it 
does  not  exceed  twenty  dollars.  If  in  the  opinion  of  said  officer 
of  police  or  chairman  the  amount  of  said  damage  exceeds  twenty 
dollars,  the  damage  shall  be  appraised,  under  oath,  by  three 
persons,  of  whom  one  shall  be  such  officer  of  police  or  chairman, 
one  shall  be  appointed  by  the  person  alleged  to  be  damaged,  and 
the  third  shall  be  appointed  by  the  other  two.  The  said  ap- 
praisers shall  also  consider  and  include  in  such  damages  the 
labor  and  time  necessarily  expended  in  the  finding  and  collecting 
of  the  sheep,  lambs,  fowls  or  other  domestic  animals  so  injured 
or  separated  and  the  value  of  those  lost  or  otherwise  damaged 
by  dogs.  The  said  officer  of  police  or  chairman  shall  return  a 
certificate  of  the  damages  found,  except  in  the  county  of  Suffolk, 
to  the  treasurer  of  the  county  in  which  the  damage  is  done, 
within  ten  days  after  such  appraisal  is  made.  The  treasurer  shall 
thereupon  submit  the  same  to  the  county  commissioners,  who, 
within  thirty  days,  shall  examine  all  such  bills,  and  if  any  doubt 
exists,  may  summon  the  appraisers  and  all  parties  interested  and 
make  such  examination  as  they  may  think  proper,  and  shall 
issue  an  order  upon  the  treasurer  of  the  county  in  which  the 
damage  was  done  for  such  amount,  if  any,  as  they  decide  to  be 
just.  The  treasurer  shall  pay  all  orders  drawn  upon  him  in  full, 
for  the  above  purpose,  out  of  any  money  in  the  county  treasury 
and  payments  made  therefor  shall  be  charged  to  the  dog  fund. 
The  appraiser  shall  receive  from  the  county,  or  in  the  county  of 
Suffolk,  from  the  city  or  town  treasurer,  out  of  the  money 
received  under  the  provisions  of  this  chapter  relating  to  dogs,  one 


92 

dollar  each  for  every  such  examination  made  by  them,  and  also 
twenty  cents  a  mile  one  way  for  their  necessary  travel;  and  the 
officer  of  the  chairman  of  selectmen  acting  in  the  case  shall  re- 
ceive twenty  cents  a  mile  one  way  for  his  necessary  travel. 

1715-16,  16,  §  2.  1744-5,  25,  §  2.  G.  S.  88,  §  64.  P.  S.  102,  §  98. 

1719,  20,  §  2.  1791,  38,  §  4.  1864,  299,  §  9.  1886,  259. 

1728-9,  10.  1858,  139,  §  4.  1867,  130,  §  10.  1889,  454,  §  1. 

1737-8,  10,  §  2.  1859,  225,  §  6. 

Cheney  v.  Holden,  16  Gray,  125. 

Osborn  v.  Selectmen  of  Lenox,  2  Allen,  207  (see  page  144). 

Worcester  v.  Ashworth,  160  Mass.  186  (see  page  143). 


Rewards  for  killing  Dogs  found  to  have  worried,  etc.,  Domestic  Animals. 

SECTION  152  (as  amended  by  1905,  106).  The  mayor  and  alder- 
men of  a  city  or  the  selectmen  of  a  town  may  offer  a  reward  of 
not  more  than  twenty-five  dollars  for  the  killing  of  any  dog 
found  to  have  worried,  maimed  or  killed  any  sheep,  lambs,  fowls 
or  other  domestic  animals,  thereby  causing  damages  for  which 
their  owner  may  become  entitled  to  compensation  from  the  dog 
fund  as  provided  for  in  the  preceding  section,  or  for  evidence 
which  shall  determine  to  the  satisfaction  of  such  mayor  and 
aldermen  or  such  selectmen  who  is  the  owner  or  keeper  of  the 
dog  by  which  such  damage  is  done.  The  county  commissioners, 
except  in  the  county  of  Suffolk,  are  authorized  and  directed  to 
pay  the  said  reward  from  the  dog  fund  upon  a  certificate  signed 
by  the  mayor  and  aldermen  or  selectmen. 

1889,  454,  §  2. 
Worcester  v.  Ashworth,  160  Mass.  186  (see  page  143). 

Hearing  to  determine  Ownership  of  Dog. 

SECTION  153.  If  the  mayor  and  aldermen  of  a  city  or  the 
selectmen  of  a  town  determine,  after  notice  to  parties  interested 
and  a  hearing,  who  is  the  owner  or  keeper  of  any  dog  which  is 
found  to  have  worried,  maimed  or  killed  any  sheep,  lambs,  fowls 
or  other  domestic  animals,  thereby  causing  damages  for  which 
their  owner  may  become  entitled  to  compensation  from  the  dog 
fund  as  provided  for  in  section  one  hundred  and  fifty-one,  they 
shall  serve  upon  the  owner  or  keeper  of  such  dog  a  notice  direct- 
ing him  within  twenty-four  hours  to  kill  or  confine  the  dog. 

1889,  454,  §  3. 


93 


Penalty  on  Owner  for  not  confining  Dog. 

SECTION  154.  A  person  who  owns  or  keeps  a  dog,  who  has 
received  such  notice  and  does  not  within  twenty-four  hours  kill 
such  dog  or  thereafter  keep  it  on  his  premises  or  under  the 
immediate  restraint  and  control  of  some  person  shall  be  punished 
by  a  fine  of  not  more  than  twenty-five  dollars;  and  any  person 
may  kill  such  dog  if  it  is  found  strolling  outside  of  the  enclosure 
or  immediate  care  of  its  owner  or  keeper. 

1889,  454,  §  4. 

Appointment  of  Person  to  investigate  Damages,  etc. 

SECTION  155  (as  amended  by  1904,  14%;  1907,  241;  1910,  892). 
The  county  commissioners,  except  in  the  county  of  Suffolk,  shall 
appoint  one  and  may  appoint  not  more  than  four  suitable  per- 
sons, all  residing  in  the  county,  any  one  of  which  persons  shall, 
at  the  request  of  said  commissioners,  or  of  the  chairman  of  the 
selectmen  of  a  town  or  officer  of  the  police  designated  as  pro- 
vided in  section  one  hundred  and  fifty-one,  investigate  any  case 
of  damages  done  by  a  dog  of  which  such  commissioners,  chairman 
or  officer  shall  have  been  informed  as  provided  in  said  section, 
and  if  he  believes  that  the  evidence  is  sufficient  to  sustain  an 
action  against  the  owner  or  keeper  of  a  dog  as  provided  in  section 
one  hundred  and  sixty-two  and  believes  that  sucih  owner  or 
keeper  is  able  to  satisfy  any  judgment  which  may  be  recovered  in 
such  action,  he  shall,  unless  such  owner  or  keeper  before  action 
brought  pays  him  such  amount  in  settlement  of  such  damages  as 
he  deems  reasonable,  bring  such  action.  It  may  be  brought  in 
his  own  name  and  in  the  county  in  which  he  resides,  and  he  shall 
prosecute  it.  Said  officer  shall  have  concurrent  jurisdiction  with 
the  officer  or  officers  appointed  under  authority  of  section  one 
hundred  and  forty-three.  All  awards  received  or  recovered  by 
him  in  such  actions  shall  be  paid  over  to  the  county  treasurer 
and  placed  to  the  credit  of  the  dog  fund.  The  county  treasurer 
shall  pay  out  of  the  dog  fund  such  reasonable  compensation  as 
the  county  commissioners  shall  allow  to  such  person  for  his 
services  and  necessary  expenses  and  the  reasonable  expense  of 
prosecuting  such  actions.  The  person  or  persons  appointed  may 
be  removed  at  any  time  by  the  county  commissioners,  and  in 
counties  in  which  they  are  appointed,  the  county  treasurer  shall 
not  be  authorized  to  bring  such  actions. 

1889,  454,  §  5.  1894,  309,  §  1. 

Worcester  v.  Ashworth,  160  Mass.  186  (see  page  143). 


94 


Persons  damaged  to  have  Choice  of  Remedy. 

SECTION  156.  The  owner  of  sheep,  lambs  or  other  domestic 
animals  which  may  have  been  worried,  maimed  or  killed  by  dogs 
shall  have  his  election  to  proceed  under  the  provisions  of  section 
one  hundred  and  fifty-one  or  of  sections  one  hundred  and  forty- 
eight,  one  hundred  and  forty-nine  and  one  hundred  and  fifty; 
but,  having  signified  his  election  by  proceeding  in  either  mode, 
he  shall  not  have  the  other  remedy. 

1859,  225,  §  8.  1864,  299,  §  99.  P.  S.  102,  §  99. 

G.  S.  88,  §  65.  1867,  130,  §  10. 

Who  to  act  in  Absence  of  Chairman  of  Selectmen. 

SECTION  157.  In  the  absence  or  illness  of  the  chairman  of  the 
selectmen,  any  one  of  the  selectmen  of  the  town  who  may  be 
duly  informed  of  damage  supposed  to  have  been  done  by  dogs 
shall  discharge  forthwith  the  duties  imposed  by  section  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty-one  upon  the  chairman. 

1867,  130,  §  10.  P.  S.  102,  §  100. 

Selectmen  may  order  Dogs  to  be  muzzled,  etc. 

SECTION  158.  The  mayor  and  aldermen  of  a  city  or  the 
selectmen  of  a  town  may  order  that  any  dog  within  the  limits 
of  such  city  or  town,  respectively,  shall  be  muzzled  or  restrained 
from  running  at  large  during  such  time  as  shall  be  prescribed  by 
such  order.  After  passing  such  order  and  posting  a  certified 
copy  thereof  in  two  or  more  public  places  in  such  city  or  town, 
or,  if  a  daily  newspaper  is  published  in  such  city  or  town,  by 
publishing  such  copy  once  in  such  newspaper,  the  mayor  and 
aldermen  or  selectmen  may  issue  their  warrant  to  one  or  more 
of  the  police  officers  or  constables  of  such  city  or  town,  who  shall, 
after  twenty-four  hours  from  the  publication  of  such  notice,  kill 
all  dogs  found  unmuzzled  or  running  at  large  contrary  to  such 
order,  and  who  shall  receive  such  compensation  therefor  as  is 
provided  in  section  one  hundred  and  forty-three. 

1877,  167,  §§  1,  2.  P.  S.  102,  §§  101,  102. 

Service  of  Order.    Penalty. 

SECTION  159.  The  mayor  and  aldermen  or  selectmen  may 
cause  service  of  such  order  to  be  made  upon  the  owner  or  keeper 
of  the  dog  by  causing  a  certified  copy  thereof  to  be  delivered  to 
him,  and  if  he  refuses  or  neglects  for  twelve  hours  thereafter  to 


95 

muzzle  or  restrain  such  dog  as  so  required,  he  shall  be  punished 
by  a  fine  of  not  more  than  twenty-five  dollars. 

1877,  167,  §  3.  P.  S.  102,  §  103. 

Penalty  on  Town  Officers. 

SECTION  160.  A  county,  city  or  town  officer  who  refuses  or 
wilfully  neglects  to  perform  the  duties  imposed  upon  him  by  the 
provisions  of  this  chapter  relating  to  dogs  shall  be  punished  by  a 
fine  of  not  more  than  one  hundred  dollars,  which  shall  be  paid, 
except  in  the  county  of  Suffolk,  into  the  county  treasury.  Who- 
ever is  aggrieved  by  such  refusal  or  neglect  may  report  the  same 
forthwith  to  the  district  attorney  of  his  district. 

1858,  139,  §  6.   '       G.  S.  88,  §  66.         1867,  130,  §  11. 

1859,  225,  §  13.         1864,  299,  §  10.         P.  S.  102,  §  104. 

In  Suffolk,  Money  from  Licenses  to  be  paid  into  City  Treasury. 
SECTION  161.  In  the  county  of  Suffolk,  all  money  received  for 
licenses  or  recovered  as  fines  or  penalties  under  the  provisions  of 
this  chapter  relating  to  dogs  shall  be  paid  into  the  treasury  of  the 
city  or  town  in  which  said  licenses  are  issued  or  said  fines  or 
penalties  recovered.  All  claims  for  damages  done  by  dogs  in 
Suffolk  county  shall  be  determined  by  appraisers  as  specified  in 
section  one  hundred  and  fifty-one  and,  when  approved  by  the 
board  of  aldermen  or  selectmen  of  the  city  or  town  in  which  the 
damage  was  done,  shall  be  paid  in  full  on  the  first  Wednesday  of 
January  of  each  year  by  the  treasurer  of  such  city  or  town,  if  the 
gross  amount  received  by  him  and  not  previously  paid  out  under 
the  provisions  of  this  chapter  relating  to  dogs  is  sufficient  there- 
for; otherwise,  such  amount  shall  be  divided  pro  rata  among 
such  claimants  in  full  discharge  of  their  claims. 

1864,  299,  §  12.  1867,  130,  §  13.  1869,  250,  §  1.  P.  S.  102,  §  105. 

Owner,  etc.,  of  Dog  liable  to  County  or  City,  etc. 

SECTION  162.  The  owner  or  keeper  of  a  dog  which  is  doing 
damage  to  sheep,  lambs  or  other  domestic  animals  shall  be  liable 
in  an  action  of  tort  to  the  county  for  all  damages  so  done  which 
the  county  commissioners  thereof  have  ordered  to  be  paid,  as 
provided  in  this  chapter.  The  county  treasurer  may,  and  if  so 
ordered  by  the  county  commissioners  shall,  bring  such  action. 
In  the  county  of  Suffolk,  such  owner  or  keeper  shall  be  liable  in 
like  manner  to  the  city  or  town  for  damages  so  done  therein 
which  the  board  of  aldermen  or  selectmen,  respectively,  have  so 


96 

ordered  to  be  paid;  and  the  city  or  town  treasurer  may,  and  if 
so  ordered  by  the  board  of  aldermen  or  selectmen  shall,  bring 
such  action. 

1858,  139,  §  5.  G.  S.  88,  §  64.  1867,  130,  §§  12,  13. 

1859,  225,  §  7.  1864,  299,  §  11.  P.  S.  102,  §  106. 

Worcester  ».  Ashworth,  160  Mass.  186  (see  page  143). 


Unexpended  Money,  how  appropriated. 

SECTION  163.  Money  which  is  received  by  a  county  treasurer 
under  the  provisions  of  the  preceding  sections  relating  to  dogs 
and  is  not  paid  out  for  damages  shall,  in  January,  be  paid  back 
to  the  treasurers  of  the  cities  and  towns  in  proportion  to  the 
amounts  received  from  such  cities  and  towns;  and  the  money  so 
refunded  shall  be  expended  for  the  support  of  public  libraries  or 
schools.  In  the  county  of  Suffolk,  money  so  received  by  the  city 
or  town  treasurer  and  not  so  paid  out  shall  be  expended  by  the 
school  committee  for  the  support  of  public  schools. 

1865,  197,  §  3.  1867,  130,  §  12.  1869,  250,  §  1.  P.  S.  102,  §  107. 

Form  of  Warrant  for  killing  Dogs. 

SECTION  164.  The  warrant  required  to  be  issued  by  the  provi- 
sions of  section  one  hundred  and  forty-three  may  be  in  the 
following  form :  — 

COMMONWEALTH  OF  MASSACHUSETTS. 
[Seal.] 
M  ,  ss.    To  ,  constable  of  the  city  (or  town)  of 

In  the  name  of  the  Commonwealth  of  Massachusetts,  you  are  hereby 
required  to  proceed  forthwith  to  kill  or  cause  to  be  killed  all  dogs  within  the 
said  town  not  duly  licensed  and  collared  according  to  the  provisions  of  chapter 
one  hundred  and  two  of  the  Revised  Laws,  and  you  are  further  required  to 
make  and  enter  complaint  against  the  owner  or  keeper  of  every  such  dog. 

Hereof  fail  not,  and  make  due  return  of  this  warrant  with  your  doings 
therein,  stating  the  number  of  dogs  killed  and  the  names  of  the  owners  or 
keepers  thereof,  and  whether  all  unlicensed  dogs  in  said  city  (or  town)  have 
been  killed,  and  the  names  of  persons  against  whom  complaints  have  been 
made  under  the  provisions  of  said  chapter,  and  whether  complaints  have 
been  made  and  entered  against  all  the  persons  who  have  failed  to  comply 
with  the  provisions  of  said  chapter,  on  or  before  the  first  day  of  October 
next. 

Given  under  my  hand  and  seal  at  aforesaid,  the  day 

of  ,  in  the  year  nineteen  hundred  and 

Mayor  of  [or  Chairman  of  the  Selectmen  of] 

1867,  136,  §  16.  P.  S.  102,  §  108. 


97 


Towns  may  make  By-laws,  etc. 

SECTION  165.  A  city  or  town  may  make  additional  ordinances 
or  by-laws  relative  to  the  licensing  and  restraining  of  dogs  and 
may  affix  penalties  of  not  more  than  ten  dollars  for  a  breach 
thereof;  but  such  ordinances  or  by-laws  shall  relate  only  to  dogs 
owned  or  kept  in  such  city  or  town;  and  the  annual  fee  required 
for  a  license  under  the  provisions  of  section  one  hundred  and 
thirty  shall  in  no  case  be  more  than  one  dollar  in  addition  to  the 
amount  required  by  said  section. 

1824,  139.  1850,  245.  G.  S.  88,  §  67. 

R.  S.  58,  §  10.  1859,  225,  §  14.  P.  S.  102,  §  109. 

Commonwealth  v.  Dow,  10  Met.  382  (see  page  146). 


Fines,  etc.,  how  recovered. 

SECTION  166.  All  fines  and  penalties  provided  in  the  preceding 
sections  relating  to  dogs  may  be  recovered  before  a  police,  dis- 
trict or  municipal  court  or  trial  justice  in  the  county  in  which  the 
offence  was  committed. 

G.  S.  88,  §68.  P.  S.  102,  §  110. 

ACTS  OF  1902,  CHAPTER  226,  AS  AMENDED  BY  ACTS  OF  1904,  CHAPTER  127. 

PROTECTING  DOMESTIC  ANIMALS  FROM  INJURY  BY  DOGS. 
Protection  of  Domestic  Animals  from  Injury  by  Dogs. 

It  shall  be  lawful  for  the  county  commissioners  of  any  county, 
or  their  agents  thereto  authorized  in  writing,  to  enter  upon  the 
premises  of  the  owner  of  any  dog  known  to  them  to  have  worried 
or  killed  sheep,  lambs,  fowls  or  other  domestic  animals,  and  then 
and  there  to  kill  such  dog,  unless  such  owner  whose  premises  are 
thus  entered  for  the  said  purpose  shall  give  a  bond  in  the  sum  of 
two  hundred  dollars,  with  sufficient  sureties,  to  be  approved  by 
the  county  commissioners,  the  condition  of  the  bond  being  that 
the  dog  shall  refrain  from  killing  or  worrying  sheep,  lambs,  fowls 
or  other  domestic  animals  for  the  space  of  twelve  months  next 
ensuing.  And  if  the  owner  of  the  dog  declares  his  intention  to 
give  such  a  bond  the  said  county  commissioners  or  their  agents 
shall  allow  him  reasonable  time  in  which  to  procure  and  prepare 
the  same  and  to  present  it  to  them,  or  to  file  it  with  the  clerk  of 
the  city  or  town  in  which  the  said  owner  resides. 


3.    SALE  OF  RABBITS. 

ACTS  OF  1911,  CHAPTER  118. 

Protection  and  Sale  of  Hares  and  Rabbits. 

SECTION  1  (as  amended  by  1914,  120).  It  shall  be  unlawful  to 
hunt,  take  or  kill  a  hare  or  rabbit  between  the  first  day  of  March 
and  the  eleventh  day  of  October,  both  inclusive,  or  to  buy  or  sell 
or  offer  for  sale  a  hare  or  rabbit  taken  or  killed  during  the  said 
period  in  this  commonwealth,  or  taken  or  killed  at  any  time  con- 
trary to  the  laws  of  any  other  state  or  country.  But  any  person 
may  buy  or  sell  hares  or  rabbits  at  any  time:  provided,  that 
they  were  not  taken  or  killed  contrary  to  the  laws  of  this  com- 
monwealth or  of  any  other  state  or  country. 

Certain  Acts  Unlawful,  etc. 

SECTION  2.  It  shall  be  unlawful  at  any  time  to  remove  or 
.attempt  to  remove  a  hare  or  rabbit  from  any  hole  in  the  ground 
or  from  any  stone  wall  or  from  under  any  ledge  or  stone  or  log  or 
tree,  and  it  shall  be  unlawful  to  take  or  kill  a  hare  or  rabbit  by  a 
trap,  snare  or  net,  or  for  that  purpose  to  construct  or  set  a  trap, 
snare  or  net,  or  to  use  a  ferret.  The  possession  of  a  ferret  in  a 
place  where  hares  or  rabbits  might  be  taken  or  killed  shall  be 
prima  facie  evidence  that  the  person  having  the  ferret  in  posses- 
sion has  used  it  for  taking  and  killing  hares  or  rabbits  contrary  to 
law.  Ferrets  used  in  violation  hereof  shall  be  confiscated. 

Certain  Rights  of  Farmers,  etc. 

SECTION  3.  This  act  shall  not  be  construed  to  prohibit  farmers 
and  fruit  growers  from  trapping  rabbits  in  box  traps  at  any  time 
during  the  year:  provided,  first,  that  such  trapping  is  done  on 
land  owned  or  leased  by  the  person  setting  the  trap  and  used  for 
the  raising  of  fruit,  vegetables  or  other  products  by  the  person  so 
trapping;  secondly,  that  the  person  so  trapping  shall  first  have 
made  an  affidavit  before  a  justice  of  the  peace  that  hares  or 
rabbits  have  injured  fruit,  vegetables  or  other  products  on  his 
said  premises  and  shall  have  forwarded  the  affidavit  so  made  to 
the  commissioners  on  fisheries  and  game;  and  thirdly,  that  the 
said  commissioners  have  issued  to  him  a  permit  so  to  trap.  It 
shall  be  unlawful  to  barter  or  sell  hares  or  rabbits  trapped  in 
accordance  with  the  provisions  of  this  section. 


99 


Repeal. 

SECTION  4.  Chapter  four  hundred  and  sixty-six  of  the  acts  of 
the  year  nineteen  hundred  and  nine  and  section  two  of  chapter 
five  hundred  and  thirty-three  of  the  acts  of  the  year  nineteen 
hundred  and  ten  are  hereby  repealed. 

Penalty. 

SECTION  5.  Whoever  violates  any  provision  of  this  act  shall 
be  punished  by  a  fine  not  exceeding  ten  dollars  for  each  offence. 


4.    PROPAGATION  OF  PHEASANTS. 

ACTS  OF  1909,  CHAPTER  309. 
Hunting  of  Pheasants  regulated. 

SECTION  1.  It  shall  be  unlawful  to  hunt,  pursue,  take  or  kill, 
sell  or  offer  for  sale  or  to  have  in  possession,  a  pheasant  of  any 
kind  or  the  flesh  of  any  pheasant  except  as  hereinafter  provided. 

Permission  may  be  granted  to  rear  Pheasants. 
SECTION  2.  Upon  application  to  the  commissioners  on  fisheries 
and  game,  written  permission  may  be  granted  to  any  person  to 
engage  in  the  rearing  of  pheasants  and  to  dispose  of  the  same, 
under  such  rules  and  regulations,  approved  by  the  governor  and 
council,  as  may  be  made  from  time  to  time  by  the  commissioners; 
and  such  artificially  propagated  pheasants  may  be  bought  or 
sold  or  had  in  possession  at  any  season  of  the  year,  and  any  per- 
son receiving  such  permission  may  hunt,  pursue,  take  or  kill  such 
pheasants  upon  the  land  owned  or  leased  by  him. 

Penalty. 

SECTION  3.  Whoever  violates  any  provision  of  this  act,  or  any 
rule  or  regulation  made  as  aforesaid,  shall  be  punished  by  a  fine 
not  exceeding  fifty  dollars  for  each  bird  or  part  thereof  in  respect 
to  which  the  violation  occurs. 

Repeal. 

SECTION  4.  Chapter  four  hundred  and  seventy-seven  of  the 
acts  of  the  year  nineteen  hundred  and  eight,  except  section  four 
of  said  chapter,  is  hereby  repealed. 


100 


ACTS  OF  1914,  CHAPTER  401. 

KILLING  OF  PHEASANTS. 
Open  Season  may  be  declared  on  Pheasants. 

SECTION  1.  The  board  of  commissioners  on  fisheries  and  game 
may  declare  an  open  season  on  pheasants  in  any  county  of  the 
commonwealth,  in  which  such  open  season  seems  advisable,  and 
may  make  such  rules  and  regulations  relating  to  bag  limit,  time 
and  length  of  open  season  and  varieties  to  be  taken  and  all  other 
matters  connected  with  such  open  season  as  the  said  board  may 
from  time  to  time  deem  necessary  or  expedient. 

Pheasants  found  damaging  Crops  may  be  captured  or  killed. 

SECTION  2.  A  person  may  captur.e,  pursue,  wound  or  kill, 
upon  land  owned  or  occupied  by  him,  a  pheasant  which  he  finds 
in  the  act  of  doing  damage  to  any  crop  on  cultivated  land;  and 
he  may  authorize  a  member  of  his  family  or  person  permanently 
employed  by  him  on  such  land  to  capture,  pursue,  wound  or  kill 
a  pheasant  under  the  circumstances  above  specified.  The  person 
by  whom  or  under  whose  direction  a  pheasant  is  so  captured, 
wounded  or  killed  shall  within  twenty-four  hours  report  the 
facts  in  writing  to  the  said  board,  stating  the  time,  place  and  the 
number  of  pheasants  so  captured,  wounded  or  killed. 

Penalty. 

SECTION  3.  Whoever  violates  any  provision  of  this  act  or  any 
rule  or  regulation  made  under  authority  hereof  shall  be  punished 
by  a  fine  not  exceeding  fifty  dollars  for  each  bird  or  part  thereof 
in  respect  to  which  the  violation  occurs. 

Repeal. 

SECTION  4.  All  acts  and  parts  of  acts  inconsistent  herewith  are 
hereby  repealed.  . 


101 


V.     STATUTES  RELATING  TO  MARKETING. 

1.    PUBLIC  MARKETS. 

GENERAL  ACTS  OF  1915,  CHAPTER  119. 

Certain  Cities  and  Towns  may  establish  Public  Markets. 

SECTION  1.  All  cities  and  all  towns  having  a  population  of  ten 
thousand  or  more  are  hereby  authorized  to  provide  and  maintain 
public  markets  with  suitable  buildings  and  grounds.  For  this 
purpose,  any  such  city  or  town  may,  with  the  approval  of  the 
state  board  of  agriculture,  take  or  acquire  land  by  purchase  or 
otherwise,  with  or  without  buildings,  and  may  make  alterations 
in  buildings  and  construct  new  buildings  on  land  so  acquired. 

Public  Market  Places. 

SECTION  2.  All  cities  and  all  towns  having  a  population  of  ten 
thousand  or  more  which  do  not  maintain  public  markets  under 
the  provisions  of  section  one  hereof  shall,  within  one  year  after 
the  passage  of  this  act,  designate  one  or  more  streets  or  squares, 
or  parts  thereof,  or  other  public  places,  which  shall  be  suitably 
situated  and  shall  be  approved  by  the  state  board  of  agriculture, 
to  be  used  by  farmers  and  other  persons  as  public  market  places. 

Rules  and  Regulations. 

SECTION  3  (as  added  by  G.  A.,  1916,  79).  Any  city  or  town  which 
maintains  a  public  market  or  market  place  in  accordance  with 
the  provisions  of  this  act  may  make  rules  and  regulations  for  the 
use  and  management  thereof,  subject  to  the  approval  of  the 
secretary  of  the  state  board  of  agriculture,  and  may  attach 
penalties  for  their  violation. 


2.    WEIGHTS  AND  MEASURES  OF  FARM  PRODUCE. 

REVISED  LAWS,  CHAPTER  62. 
Weight  of  Certain  Commodities. 

SECTION  3  (as  amended  by  1902,  115,  and*  1911,  397).  The 
barrel  of  flour,  measured  by  weight,  shall  contain  one  hundred 
and  ninety-six  pounds,  the  barrel  of  potatoes  one  hundred  and 
sixty-five  pounds,  and  the  barrel  of  sweet  potatoes  one  hundred 
and  fifty  pounds.  1894)  i98f  §  5. 


102 


Weight  of  Bushel. 

SECTION  4  (a*  amended  by  1910,  297;  1912,  284;  1913,  176; 
G.  A.,  1915,  43).  The  bushel  of  wheat  shall  contain  sixty  pounds; 
of  Indian  corn  or  of  rye,  fifty-six  pounds;  of  barley,  forty-eight 
pounds;  of  oats,  thirty-two  pounds;  of  corn  meal,  fifty  pounds; 
of  rye  meal,  fifty  pounds;  of  smooth  peas,  sixty  pounds;  of 
wrinkled  peas,  fifty-six  pounds;  of  soy  beans  (glycine  hispida), 
fifty-eight  pounds;  of  potatoes,  sixty  pounds;  of  apples,  forty- 
eight  pounds;  of  carrots,  fifty  pounds;  of  onions,  fifty-two 
pounds;  of  clover  seed,  sixty  pounds;  of  herdsgrass  or  timothy 
seed,  forty-five  pounds;  of  Japanese  barnyard  millet  (panicum 
crusgalli),  thirty-five  pounds;  of  bran  and  shorts,  twenty  pounds; 
of  flaxseed,  fifty-five  pounds;  of  coarse  salt,  seventy  pounds;  of 
fine  salt,  seventy  pounds;  of  lime,  seventy  pounds;  of  sweet 
potatoes,  fifty-four  pounds;  of  beans,  sixty  pounds;  of  lima 
beans,  fifty-six  pounds;  of  scarlet  runner  pole  beans  or  of  white 
runner  pole  beans,  fifty  pounds;  of  broad  Windsor  beans,  forty- 
seven  pounds;  of  dried  apples,  twenty-five  pounds;  of  dried 
peaches,  thirty- three  pounds;  of  rough  rice,  forty-four  pounds; 
of  upland  cotton  seed,  thirty  pounds;  of  sea  island  cotton  seed, 
forty-four  pounds;  of  buckwheat,  forty-eight  pounds;  of  beets, 
sixty  pounds;  of  cranberries,  thirty-two  pounds;  of  pears,  fifty- 
eight  pounds;  of  parsnips,  forty-five  pounds;  of  roasted  pea- 
nuts, twenty  pounds;  of  green  peanuts,  twenty-two  pounds;  of 
peaches,  forty-eight  pounds;  of  tomatoes,  fifty-six  pounds;  of 
turnips,  fifty-five  pounds;  of  quinces,  forty-eight  pounds;  of 
string  beans,  twenty-four  pounds;  of  shell  beans,  twenty-eight 
pounds;  of  unshelled  green  peas,  twenty-eight  pounds;  of  dande- 
lions, twelve  pounds;  of  spinach,  twelve  pounds;  of  beet  greens, 
twelve  pounds;  of  kale,  twelve  pounds;  and  of  parsley,  eight 
pounds. 

Weight  of  Meal. 

SECTION  5.  In  this  commonwealth,  a  bushel  of  cracked  corn  or 
feed  or  any  meal  except  oatmeal  shall  be  fifty  pounds,  and  a 
cental  shall  be  one  hundred  pounds. 

1840,  82,  §  1.          G.  S.  49,  §  4.          P.  S.  60,  §  22. 
1855,  232,  §  1.         1880,  158,  §  1.         1888,  414,  §  2. 


103 


3.    MILLERS. 
REVISED  LAWS,  CHAPTER  196. 
Millers  to  keep  Scales,  etc. 

SECTION  63.  A  miller  occupying  and  using  a  grist  mill  who 
neglects  to  provide  himself  with  scales  and  weights  or  a  vibrating 
steelyard  to  weigh  corn,  grain  and  meal  to  and  from  the  mill, 
when  required,  or  who  refuses  so  to  weigh  corn,  grain  or  meal 
when  required,  shall  for  each  offence  forfeit  to  any  person  who 
sues  therefor  not  more  than  five  dollars. 

C   L   106,  §  2.  1728-9,  6,  §§  I,  2.          1795,  74,  §  8.  G.  S.  149,  §  65. 

1709-10,  3,  §  3.  1762-3,  19,  §  5.  R.  S.  116,  §  59. 

Toll. 

SECTION  64.  The  toll  for  grinding  any  kind  of  grain  shall  not 
exceed  one  sixteenth  part  thereof. 

C.  L.  106,  §  2.  1709-10,  3,  §  3.  1728-9,  6,  §  2.  1762-3,  19,  §  6. 

1795,  74,  §9.  U.S.  116,  §60.  G.  S.  149,  §  66.  P.  S.  190,  §  72. 


4.    INSPECTION  AND  SALES  ACT. 
REVISED  LAWS,  CHAPTER  57. 

BEEF. 

Weighers  of  Beef. 

SECTION  1.  In  each  city  or  town  where  beef  cattle  are  sold  for 
the  purpose  of  market  or  barrelling,  the  mayor  and  aldermen  or 
selectmen  shall  appoint  one  or  more  persons,  conveniently  situ- 
ated in  such  city  or  town  and  not  dealers  in  cattle,  to  be  weighers 
of  beef,  who  shall  be  sworn. 

1815,  99,  §  1.  R.  S.  28,  §  36.  G.  S.  49,  §  3.  P.  S.  60,  §  1. 

Weighers'  Fees. 

SECTION  2.  Fees  for  weighing  cattle  shall  be  paid  by  the 
vendor  and  shall  be  twenty  cents  for  each  of  the  first  five; 
fifteen  cents  for  each  of  the  second  five;  ten  cents  each  from 
eleven  to  twenty,  inclusive;  five  cents  for  each  above  twenty; 
also  twelve  and  one  half  cents  for  each  certificate  which  shall 
contain  the  weight  of  each  of  the  cattle  weighed  for  one  person, 
unless  the  vendor  requests  a  division  thereof. 

1815,  99,  §  3.  R.  S.  28,  §  38.  G.  S.  49,  §  4.  P.  S.  60,  §  2. 


104 


FRUITS,  NUTS  AND  VEGETABLES. 
Sale  of  Fruits,  Vegetables,  etc.,  regulated. 

SECTION  21  (as  amended  by  1912,  246,  and  1913,  713).  All 
fruits,  vegetables  and  nuts,  except  as  hereinafter  otherwise  pro- 
vided, shall  be  sold  at  retail  by  dry  measure,  weight  or  by  nu- 
merical count,  and  all  fruits  and  vegetables  for  which  a  legal 
weight  has  been  established,  except  peas  and  beans  sold  in 
quantities  of  four  quarts  or  less  for  seeding  or  planting  purposes, 
shall  be  sold  at  retail  only  by  weight  or  numerical  count.  Who- 
ever violates  any  provision  of  this  section  shall  forfeit  a  sum  not 
exceeding  ten  dollars  for  each  offence. 

Sale  of  Certain  Berries  regulated. 

SECTION  22  (as  amended  by  1909,  850).  Baskets  or  other 
receptacles  holding  one  quart  or  less  which  are  used  or  intended 
to  be  used  in  the  sale  of  strawberries,  blackberries,  cherries, 
currants,  blueberries,  raspberries  or  gooseberries  shall  be  of  the 
capacity  of  one  quart,  one  pint  or  one  half  pint,  Massachusetts 
standard  dry  measure. 

Penalty. 

Whoever  sells  or  offers  for  sale  a  basket  or  other  receptacle 
holding  one  quart  or  less  to  be  used  in  the  sale  of  any  of  the 
aforesaid  fruit  which  does  not  conform  to  said  standard,  and  who- 
ever sells  or  offers  for  sale  any  of  the  aforesaid  fruit  in  any  basket 
or  other  receptacle  holding  one  quart  or  less  which  does  not  con- 
form to  said  standard,  shall  be  punished  by  a  fine  of  not  less  than 
five  nor  more  than  ten  dollars  for  each  offence.  Said  baskets  or 
other  receptacles  shall  not  be  required  to  be  tested  and  sealed  as 
provided  by  chapter  sixty-two,  but  the  sealer  or  deputy  sealer  of 
weights  and  measures  of  any  city  or  town  or  the  deputy  sealer  of 
the  commonwealth  may,  if  he  so  desires,  and  shall,  upon  com- 
plaint, test  the  capacity  of  any  basket  or  other  receptacle  in 
which  any  of  the  aforesaid  fruit  is  sold  or  intended  to  be  sold; 
and  if  the  same  is  found  to  contain  less  than  the  standard  meas- 
ure he  shall  seize  the  same  and  make  complaint  against  the 
vendor. 


105 


Nuts,  etc.,  measured  by  the  Strike. 

SECTION  23.  Chestnuts,  walnuts,  cranberries  and  all  other 
berries  when  sold  shall,  subject  to  the  provisions  of  the  preceding 
section,  be  measured  by  the  strike  or  level  measures. 

1850,261,§1.  1851,  238,  §  1.  G.  S.  49,  §  62.  P.  S.  60,  §  19. 

ACTS    OF    1911,    CHAPTER    380,    SUPERSEDING    REVISED    LAWS,    CHAPTER    57, 

SECTION  24. 

Legal  and  Standard  Barrel  and  Crate  for  Cranberries. 

SECTION  1.  The  legal  and  standard  barrel  for  cranberries  shall 
measure  not  less  than  twenty-five  and  one  fourth  inches  between 
the  heads,  inside;  the  diameter  of  the  head  shall  be  not  less  than 
sixteen  and  one  fourth  inches,  including  the  bevelled  edge; 
the  outside  bilge  circumference  shall  measure  not  less  than  fifty- 
eight  and  one  half  inches;  the  thickness  of  the  staves  shall  be 
not  greater  than  four  tenths  of  an  inch.  The  legal  and  standard 
crate  for  cranberries  shall  measure  seven  and  one  half  inches,  by 
twelve  inches,  by  twenty-two  inches,  inside,  exclusive  of  any 
interior  partition  or  support,  and  shall  have  an  interior  capacity 
of  one  thousand  nine  hundred  and  eighty  cubic  inches;  but  any 
square  or  oblong  crate  or  box  of  different  form,  but  of  as  great 
interior  capacity,  shall  be  considered  a  legal  standard  crate.  It 
shall  be  lawful  to  use  for  the  sale  and  delivery  of  cranberries 
square  or  oblong  packages  which  contain  one  half  crate  or  one 
quarter  crate:  provided,  that  such  packages  have  an  interior 
capacity,  exclusive  of  any  partition  or  support,  of  nine  hundred 
and  ninety  and  four  hundred  and  ninety-five  cubic  inches,  re- 
spectively. No  barrel,  crate,  one  half  crate  or  one  quarter  crate, 
intended  for  the  sale  or  delivery  of  cranberries,  except  of  the 
standard  measure  herein  specified  and  plainly  marked  with  the 
words  "Massachusetts  Standard  Measure",  shall  be  manufac- 
tured or  sold.  No  person  shall  so  mark  any  barrel  or  other 
package  so  used,  or  intended  to  be  used,  unless  its  interior 
capacity  is  as  great  as  the  capacity  herein  specified  for  such 
package. 

Massachusetts  Standard  Measure. 

SECTION  2.  Every  barrel,  crate,  one  half  crate  or  one  quarter 
crate  used  for  the  sale  or  delivery  of  cranberries  shall  be  of  the 
Massachusetts  standard  measure,  and  shall  be  marked  as  re- 
quired by  this  act.  No  person  shall  use  any  barrel,  crate,  one 
half  crate  or  one  quarter  crate  for  such  sale  or  delivery  the 


106 

capacity  of  which  is  less  than  that  of  the  corresponding  standard 
package  herein  provided  for.  Any  person  violating  any  of  the 
provisions  of  this  act  shall  be  punished  by  a  fine  not  exceeding 
one  hundred  dollars.  The  sealers  of  weights  and  measures  of  the 
several  cities  and  towns  shall  cause  the  provisions  of  this  act  to 
be  enforced. 

Net  Weight. 

SECTION  3.  It  shall  be  lawful  to  use  for  the  sale  and  delivery 
of  cranberries  packages  containing  one,  two  or  four  pounds  of 
cranberries  net  weight:  provided,  that  said  net  weight  is  plainly 
stamped  on  the  top  or  side  of  each  package. 

REVISED  LAWS,  CHAPTER  57. 

GRAIN  AND  MEAL. 
Grain  and  Meal,  how  sold. 

SECTION  25.  In  all  contracts  for  the  sale  and  delivery  of 
wheat,  corn,  rye,  oats,  barley,  buckwheat,  cracked  corn,  ground 
corn  or  corn  meal,  ground  rye  or  rye  meal,  or  feed,  or  any  other 
meal  except  oatmeal,  cider  apples,  beans  or  peas,  the  same  shall, 
except  as  provided  in  chapter  sixty-two,  be  bargained  for  and 
sold  either  by  the  bushel  or  by  the  cental. 

1813,  51.  1840,  82,  §  1.  G.  S.  49,  §  63.  P.  S.  60,  §  21. 

R.  S.  28,  §  160.  1855,  232,  §  1.  1880,  158,  §  2.  1888,  414,  §  1. 

Eaton  v.  Kegan,  114  Mass.  433  (see  page  147). 


Measurers  to  be  appointed. 

SECTION  26.  The  mayor  and  aldermen  of  cities  and  selectmen 
of  towns  shall  annually  appoint  one  or  more  measurers  of  grain; 
and  if  only  one  is  appointed  by  them,  they  may  authorize  him  to 
appoint  deputy-measurers. 


C.  L.  156,  §  2.  1762-3,  19,  §  2.  G.  S.  49,  §  65. 

1742-3,  4,  §  5.  1855,  232,  §  2;  422.  P.  S.  60,  §  23. 


Duties  of  Measurers. 

SECTION  27.  Each  of  such  measurers  and  deputies  shall,  upon 
request  of  a  party  to  a  contract  for  the  sale  by  the  bushel  of  any 
quantity  exceeding  one  bushel  of  either  of  the  articles  mentioned 
in  section  four  of  chapter  sixty-two,  ascertain  the  weight  thereof 
and  give  a  certificate  of  the  number  of  bushels,  as  ascertained 
by  weight  according  to  the  rule  prescribed  in  said  section. 

1762-3,  19,  §  3.  1855,  232,  §  2;  422.  G.  S.  49,  §  65.  P.  S.  60,  §  24. 


107 


Penalty  for  Short  Weight. 

SECTION  28.  Whoever  sells  or  delivers  by  the  bushel  any 
quantity,  exceeding  one  bushel,  of  either  of  the  articles  aforesaid, 
if  the  same  has  not  been  weighed  by  one  of  the  measurers  of 
grain,  shall  forfeit  to  the  purchaser  two  dollars  for  every  meas- 
ured bushel  so  delivered  which  does  not  contain  the  required 
number  of  pounds. 

1840,  82,  §  2.  1855,  232,  §  3.  G.  S.  49,  §  66.  P.  S..60,  §  25. 

Certificate  of  Sale  by  Cental. 

SECTION  29.  If  said  articles  are  sold  by  the  cental,  the  meas- 
urers and  their  deputies,  upon  application  as  before  provided, 
shall  give  a  certificate  of  the  number  of  centals  of  the  same;  and 
whoever  sells  and  delivers  a  quantity  of  the  same  exceeding  one 
cental,  if  it  has  not  been  weighed  by  said  measurers,  shall  forfeit 
to  the  purchaser  ten  dollars  for  every  lot,  purporting  to  be  a 
cental,  which  contains  less  than  one  hundred  pounds. 

1880,  158,  §  3.  P.  S.  60,  §  26. 

Fees  of  Measurers. 

SECTION  30.  The  fees  of  measurers  of  grain  shall  be  prescribed 
by  the  mayor  and  aldermen  or  by  the  selectmen  of  the  several 
places  in  which  they  are  appointed,  and  one-half  shall  be  paid  by 
the  seller  and  one-half  by  the  purchaser. 

1762-3,  19,  §  3.  1855,  232,  §  4.  G.  S.  49,  §  67.  P.  S.  60,  §  27. 

HAY  AND  STRAW. 

Weighers  of  Hay. 

SECTION  35.  If  the  city  council  of  a  city  or  a  town  accepts  the 
provisions  of  this  section  or  has  accepted  the  corresponding  provi- 
sions of  earlier  laws,  the  mayor  and  aldermen  or  selectmen  may 
from  time  to  time  appoint,  for  a  term  not  exceeding  one  year, 
weighers  of  hay  who  shall  have  the  superintendence  of  the  hay 
scales  belonging  to  such  city  or  town,  and  shall  weigh  hay  offered 
for  sale  therein  and  any  other  article  offered  to  be  weighed. 
Such  weighers  of  hay  may  be  at  any  time  removed  by  such 
mayor  and  aldermen  or  selectmen.  Cities  and  towns  may  estab- 
lish ordinances  and  by-laws  for  the  regulation  of  hay  scales  and 
of  the  compensation  of  weighers  of  hay.  A  person  who,  not 
having  been  so  appointed,  sets  up  hay  scales  in  a  city  or  town  for 


108 

the  purpose  of  weighing  hay  or  other  articles  shall  forfeit  to  the 
use  of  such  city  or  town  twenty  dollars  a  month,  so  long  as  such 
scales  are  continued. 

1824,102.         R.S.  15,  §38;  28,  §§95-98.        G.  S.  18,  §  37;  49,  §§  72-75.        P.  S.  60,  §§  32-34. 

Inspectors  of  Pressed  Hay  and  Straw. 

SECTION  36.  The  mayor  and  aldermen  of  a  city  or  the  select- 
men of  a  town  in  which  pressed  or  bundled  hay  or  straw  is  sold 
may,  on  the  petition  of  ten  or  more  voters  thereof,  annually 
appoint  one  or  more  inspectors  of  pressed  or  bundled  hay  and 
straw,  who  shall  be  sworn.  They  may  remove  any  inspector  so 
appointed,  fill  any  vacancy  and  fix  the  fees  for  inspecting,  weigh- 
ing and  marking,  which  shall  be  paid  by  the  person  employing 
the  inspector. 

1835,  126.    1847,  246,  §§  1,  2,  6.     G.  S.  49,  §§  78,  82.    1861,  67.    P.  S.  60,  §§  35,  39. 

Duties  of  Inspectors  of  Pressed  Hay  and  Straw. 

SECTION  37.  Each  inspector  shall  provide  himself  with  proper 
scales,  weights,  seals  and  other  suitable  instruments  and,  on 
request  of  the  owner  or  seller,  shall  inspect  and  weigh  all  pressed 
or  bundled  hay  and  straw  within  the  limits  of  the  city,  town  or 
ward  for  which  he  may  be  appointed.  » 

1847,  246,  §§  3,  5.  G.  S.  49,  §§  79,  81.          1861,  67.  P.  S.  60,  §§  36,  38. 

Pressed  Hay  and  Straw,  how  Numbered  and  Marked. 

SECTION  38.  Bales  or  bundles  of  hay  or  straw  so  inspected 
which  are  found  to  be  sweet,  of  good  quality  and  free  from 
damage  or  improper  mixture  shall  be  branded  or  marked  "No.  1." 
Such  bales  or  bundles  of  hay  or  straw  of  a  secondary  quality 
shall  be  branded  or  marked  "No.  2."  Bales  or  bundles  of  hay 
or  straw  found  to  be  wet  or  damaged,  or  which  contain  sub- 
stances not  valuable  as  hay  or  straw,  as  the  case  may  be,  shall 
be  branded  or  marked  "Bad."  Each  bale  or  bundle  so  inspected 
shall  be  branded  or  marked  with  the  name  of  the  inspector,  the 
city  or  town  for  which  he  is  appointed,  the  month  and  year  when 
the  inspection  is  made  and  the  net  weight  of  the  bundle. 

1836,  240,  §  1.  G.  S.  49,  §  80.  P.  S.  60,  §  37. 

1847,  246,  §  4.  1861,  67. 

Penalty  for  selling  without  Inspection,  etc. 

SECTION  39  (as  amended  by  1902,  459).  Whoever,  in  a  city  or 
town  for  which  an  inspector  is  appointed,  sells  pressed  or  bundled 


109 

hay  or  straw  which  has  not  been  inspected  and  weighed  as  before 
provided,  shall  forfeit  two  dollars  for  each  bale  or  bundle  so  sold. 
But  no  such  inspection  and  weighing  need  be  made  unless  the 
vendee  at  the  time  of  purchase  requires  it. 

1836,  240,  §  2.  G.  S.  49,  §  83.  P.  S.  60,  §  40. 

1847,  246,  §  7.  1861,  67. 

POTATOES,  ONIONS  AND  SALT. 
Sale  of  Potatoes,  Onions  and  Salt. 

SECTION  60.  In  order  to  ascertain  the  mean  or  true  weight  of 
potatoes,  onions  or  salt,  the  vendor  shall  weigh  ten  measures  at 
least  in  every  hundred  bushels,  five  measures  at  least  in  every 
fifty  bushels  and  two  measures  at  least  in  every  less  quantity 
than  fifty  bushels  sold,  unless  the  vendor  and  vendee  appoint  a 
third  person  to  measure  or  ascertain  the  weight  or  quantity  of 
the  same  or  unless  they  agree  on  such  weight  or  quantity,  or 
unless  the  amount  sold  does  not  exceed  ten  bushels  and  the 
vendee  do'es  not  require  the  same  to  be  weighed.  Whoever  sells 
potatoes,  onions  or  salt,  without  so  ascertaining  the  weight,  shall 
forfeit  two  dollars  for  every  bushel  sold  and  in  like  proportion 
for  a  greater  or  less  quantity,  to  the  use  of  the  person  who  first 
prosecutes  therefor. 

1817,  130.  1847,  14.  G.  S.  49,  §  180. 

R.  S.  28,  §  199.  1856,  271.  P.  S.  60,  §§  61,  62. 

TIMOTHY  on  HERDSGRASS  SEED. 

Sale  of  Timothy  regulated. 

SECTION  65.  All  contracts  for  the  sale  and  delivery  of  timothy 
or  herdsgrass  seed  shall,  except  as  provided  in  chapter  sixty-three, 
be  made  by  the  standard  weight  prescribed  in  section  four  of 
chapter  sixty-two.  Whoever  violates  the  provisions  of  this  sec- 
tion shall  forfeit  not  more  than  twenty  dollars  "for  each  offence. 

1862,  134.  P.  S.  60,  §§  67,  68. 

VINEGAR. 

Penalty  for  selling  Adulterated  Vinegar. 

SECTION  66  (as  amended  by  1911,  600,  §  1).  Whoever,  himself 
or  by  his  servant  or  agent  or  as  the  servant  or  agent  of  another 
person,  sells,  exchanges  or  delivers,  or  has  in  his  custody  or 
possession  with  intent  to  sell,  exchange  or  deliver,  or  exposes  or 
offers  for  sale  or  exchange  adulterated  vinegar,  or  whoever  labels, 
brands,  or  sells  as  cider  vinegar  or  as  apple  vinegar,  any  vinegar 


110 

not  the  exclusive  product  of  the  alcoholic  and  subsequent  acetous 
fermentation  of  the  pure  juice  of  fresh  apples,  shall  be  punished 
by  a  fine  of  not  more  than  one  hundred  dollars. 

Standard  of  Vinegar  established. 

SECTION  67  (as  amended  by  1911,  600,  §  2,  and  G.  A.,  1915,  239}. 
Vinegar  shall  contain  no  added  or  artificial  coloring  matter,  and 
shall  contain  not  less  than  four  and  one  half  per  cent,  by  weight, 
of  absolute  acetic  acid.  Cider  vinegar  shall  in  addition  contain 
not  less  than  one  and  eight  tenths  per  cent  by  weight,  of  cider 
vinegar  solids.  If  vinegar  contains  any  added  or  artificial  color- 
ing matter,  or  less  than  the  required  amount  of  acidity,  or  if 
cider  vinegar  contains  less  than  the  required  amount  of  acidity 
or  of  cider  vinegar  solids,  it  shall  be  deemed  to  be  adulterated. 
The  commissioner  of  health  shall  determine  or  cause  to  be  de- 
termined, from  time  to  time,  analytical  methods  for  the  esti- 
mation of  solids  and  of  acetic  acid  in  vinegar,  and  said  methods 
shall  be  published  in  the  monthly  bulletin  of  the  state  depart- 
ment of  health.  No  persons  shall  estimate  the  solids  or  the 
acetic  acid  content  of  vinegar  for  determining  the  composition 
or  value  of  said  vinegar  as  a  basis  for  payment  in  buying  or  in 
selling,  or  for  the  purpose  of  inspection,  by  methods  other  than 
those  published  as  herein  described. 

ACTS  OF  1911,  CHAPTER  600,  SECTION  3,  AS  AMENDED  BY  GENERAL  ACTS  OF  1915, 

CHAPTER  158. 

Marking  of  Receptacles  containing  Vinegar. 

Each  cask,  barrel  or  other  container  used  by  a  manufacturer  or 
producer  of  or  wholesale  dealer  in  vinegar,  to  contain  vinegar 
sold  or  offered  for  sale,  shall  be  plainly  marked  with  the  name 
and  place  of  business  of  the  said  manufacturer,  producer  or 
wholesale  dealer,  the  kind  of  vinegar  contained  therein,  the  sub- 
stance or  substances  from  which  the  vinegar  is  made,  and  cider 
vinegar,  if  diluted  with  water,  shall  be  distinctly  and  conspicu- 
ously labelled  to  indicate  this  fact,  as  for  example,  "Diluted  to 
Legal  Strength."  Every  compound  or  mixture  or  blend  of 
vinegar  shall  be  marked  with  the  word  "compound"  or  "mix- 
ture", with  a  statement  of  its  constituents  and  the  percentage  of 
each  constituent.  The  principal  label,  including  the  word  "  com- 
pound" or  "mixture",  if  used  on  vinegar  in  wooden  packages, 
shall  be  in  Roman  letters  not  less  than  one  inch  high,  properly 
spaced  and  in  straight  parallel  lines  with  no  more  than  two 


Ill 

inches  of  space  between  each  line.  The  marking  of  vinegar  in 
other  containers  than  wooden  packages  shall  be  governed  by  the 
provisions  of  sections  eighteen  and  nineteen  of  chapter  seventy- 
five  of  the  Revised  Laws.  Whoever,  himself,  or  by  his  servant 
or  agent,  violates  any  provision  of  this  section  shall  be  punished 
by  a  fine  of  not  more  than  one  hundred  dollars. 

REVISED  LAWS,  CHAPTER  57. 
Penalty  for  selling  Deleterious  Vinegar. 

SECTION  68.  Every  person  who  manufactures  for  sale,  or 
offers  or  exposes  for  sale,  any  vinegar  found  upon  proper  tests  to 
contain  any  preparation  of  lead,  copper,  sulphuric  acid  or  other 
ingredient  injurious  to  health  shall  for  each  such  offence  be 
punished  by  a  fine  of  not  less  than  one  hundred  dollars. 

1880,  113,  §  2.  P.  S.  60,  §  70. 

ACTS  OF  1911,  CHAPTER  600. 

Enforcement  of  Law. 

SECTION  4.  All  officers  or  persons  whose  duty  it  is  to  enforce 
the  laws  relating  to  food  and  milk,  shall  enforce  the  laws  relating 
to  vinegar,  and  all  statutes  relating  to  food  shall  apply  to  vinegar 
so  far  as  they  may  be  applicable. 

Repeal. 

SECTION  5.  Section  sixty-nine  of  chapter  fifty-seven  of  the 
Revised  Laws  is  hereby  repealed. 


5.    SALE  OF  MEAT  AND  PROVISIONS. 

REVISED  LAWS,  CHAPTER  56,  SECTION  70,  AS  AMENDED  BY  ACTS  OP  1908, 
CHAPTER  411,  SECTION  1;  ACTS  OF  1912,  CHAPTER  448;  AND  ACTS  OP  1914, 
CHAPTER  627. 

Inspection  of  Meat,  Provisions,  etc. 

SECTION  70.  Boards  of  health  of  cities  and  towns,  by  them- 
selves, their  officers  or  agents,  may  inspect  the  carcasses  of  all 
slaughtered  animals  and  all  meatr  fish,  vegetables,  produce,  fruit 
or  provisions  of  any  kind  found  in  their  cities  or  towns,  and  for 
such  purposes  may  enter  any  building,  enclosure  or  other  place 
in  which  such  carcasses  or  articles  are  stored,  kept  or  exposed  for 
sale.  If,  on  such  inspection,  it  is  found  that  such  carcasses  or 
articles  are  tainted,  diseased,  corrupted,  decayed,  unwholesome 
or,  from  any  cause,  unfit  for  food,  the  board  of  health  shall  seize 


112 

the  same  and  cause  it  or  them  to  be  destroyed  forthwith  or  dis- 
posed of  otherwise  than  for  food.  All  money  received  by  the 
board  of  health  for  property  disposed  of  as  aforesaid  shall,  after 
deducting  the  expenses  of  said  seizure,  be  paid  to  the  owner  of 
such  property.  If  the  board  of  health  seizes  or  condemns  any 
such  carcass  or  meat  for  the  reason  that  it  is  affected  with  a 
contagious  disease,  it  shall  immediately  give  notice  to  the  board 
of  cattle  commissioners  of  the  name  of  the  owner  or  person  in 
whose  possession  it  was  found,  the  nature  of  the  disease  and  the 
disposition  made  of  said  meat  or  carcass. 

Enforcement  of  Rules  and  Regulations,  etc. 

Boards  of  health  of  cities  and  towns  may  make  and  enforce 
rules  and  regulations,  subject  to  the  approval  of  the  state  board 
of  health,  as  to  the  conditions  under  which  all  articles  of  food 
may  be  kept  for  sale  or  exposed  for  sale,  in  order  to  prevent 
contamination  thereof  and  injury  to  the  public  health.  Before 
the  board  of  health  of  any  city  or  town  submits  such  rules  and 
regulations  to  the  state  board  of  health  for  approval,  it  shall 
hold  a  public  hearing  thereon,  of  which  notice  shall  be  given  by 
publication  for  two  successive  weeks,  the  first  publication  to  be 
at  least  fourteen  days  prior  to  the  date  of  the  hearing,  in  a  news- 
paper published  in  such  city  or  town,  or,  if  none  is  so  published, 
in  a  newspaper  published  in  the  county  in  which  such  city  or 
town  is  located.  Any  person  affected  by  such  rules  and  regula- 
tions, in  the  form  in  which  they  are  presented  to  the  state  board 
of  health  for  approval,  may  appeal  to  the  said  board  for  a  further 
hearing,  and  said  board  shall  not  grant  its  approval  to  the  rules 
and  regulations  concerning  which  such  an  appeal  has  been  taken 
until  it  has  held  a  public  hearing  thereon,  advertised  in  the 
manner  specified  above  in  this  section  with  reference  to  hearings 
before  boards  of  health  in  cities  and  towns. 

Not  to  prevent  Exposure  of  Food  Articles  in  Boston  "  Market  Limits." 

No  regulation  adopted  in  accordance  with  this  act  shall  be 
construed  as  preventing  the  exposure  of  food  articles  for  sale  at 
retail  in  the  Boston  "market  limits",  as  defined  in  the  ordi- 
nances of  the  city  of  Boston  of  the  year  eighteen  hundred  and 
ninety-eight,  on  Saturdays  or  the  day  immediately  preceding  any 
holiday  observed  in  Boston,  but  no  area  in  said  "market  limits" 
where  food  articles  are  not  at  the  time  of  the  passage  of  this  act 


113 

exposed  for  sale  at  retail  on  these  days  shall  be  occupied  for  the 
exposure  of  food  articles  without  a  permit  from  the  board  of 
health. 

Penalty. 

Whoever  violates  any  rule  or  regulation  of  a  board  of  health  of 
a  city  or  town  approved  by  the  state  board  of  health  shall  be 
punished  by  a  fine  of  not  more  than  one  hundred  dollars. 

1872  231.  §  2       1876,  180,  §  2.     1892,  195,  §  2.         1899,  408, §  20. 
1875,  29,  §  2.       P.  S.  58,  §  2.      1894,  491,  §§  10,  11,  13. 

Inspection  of  Veal. 

SECTION  71  (as  amended  by  1908,  411,  §  2).  The  board  of 
health,  by  themselves,  their  officers  or  agents,  may  inspect  all 
veal  found,  offered  or  exposed  for  sale  or  kept  with  the  intent  to 
sell  in  its  city  or  town  and  if,  in  its  opinion,  said  veal  is  that  of  a 
calf  less  than  four  weeks  old  when  killed,  the  board  shall  seize 
and  destroy  or  dispose  of  it  as  provided  in  the  preceding  section, 
subject,  however,  to  the  provisions  thereof  relative  to  the  disposal 
of  money. 

1866,  253,  §  1.       1875,  29,  §  3.      P.  S.  58,  §  3;  208,  §  2.    1899,  408,  §  20. 
1872,  231,  §  3.       1876,  180,  §  3.     1894,  491,  §  12. 

Penalty  for  obstructing  Inspector. 

SECTION  72  (as  amended  by  1908,  411,  §  3).  Whoever  prevents, 
obstructs  or  interferes  with  the  board  of  health,  its  officers  or 
agents,  in  the  performance  of  its  duties  as  provided  herein,  or 
hinders,  obstructs  or  interferes  with  any  inspection  or  examina- 
tion by  it  or  them,  or  whoever  secretes  or  removes  any  carcass, 
meat,  fish,  vegetables,  fruit  or  provisions  of  any  kind,  for  the 
purpose  of  preventing  the  same  from  being  inspected  or  exam- 
ined under  the  provisions  of  sections  seventy  to  seventy-six, 
inclusive,  shall  be  punished  by  a  fine  of  not  more  than  one  hun- 
dred dollars  or  by  imprisonment  for  not  more  than  sixty  days,  or 
by  both  such  fine  and  imprisonment. 

P.  S.  58,  §  2.  1894,  491,  §  13. 

Sale  of  Unwholesome  Food. 

SECTION  73  (as  amended  by  1907,  293).  The  provisions  of  sec- 
tion seventy-three  of  chapter  fifty-six  of  the  Revised  Laws  shall 
not  apply  to  persons,  firms,  or  corporations  engaged  in  the  whole- 
sale fruit  and  vegetable  business,  who,  at  the  time  of  sale  of 
fruit  or  vegetables  in  the  original  package,  make  known  to  the 


114 

purchaser  the  partly  decayed  condition  of  the  articles  in  said 
package. 

1784,  50.          G.  S.  166,  §  1.      1875,  29,  §  5.      P.  S.  58,  §  5;  208,  §  1. 
R.  S.  131,  §  1.      1872,  231,  §  5.       1876,  180,  §  5.      1894,  491,  §  15. 

Hemmenway  v.  Wood,  1  Pick.  524. 
Peckham  ».  Holman,  11  Pick.  484. 


Penalties  for  Sale  of  Unwholesome  Meal. 

SECTION  74.  Whoever  kills  or  causes  to  be  killed  or  knowingly 
sells,  offers  or  exposes  for  sale  or  has  in  his  possession  with  intent 
to  sell  for  food  the  veal  of  a  calf  killed  when  less  than  four  weeks 
old  shall  be  punished  by  a  fine  of  not  more  than  one  hundred 
dollars  or  by  imprisonment  for  not  more  than  sixty  days,  or  by 
both  such  fine  and  imprisonment. 

1885,  239.          1866,  253,  §  1.       1875,  29,  §  5.        P.  S.  208,  §  2. 
G.  S.  106,  §  2.      1872,  231,  §  5.      1876,  180,  §  5.       1894,  491,  §  15. 

Commonwealth  v.  Raymond,  97  Mass.  567  (see  page  147). 


Board  of  Health  may  cause  Publication  of  Certain  Facts. 

SECTION  75.  The  board  of  health  for  the  city  or  town  in  which 
any  animal  or  property  has  been  condemned  under  the  provisions 
of  sections  seventy  and  seventy-one  may  cause  a  description  of 
the  place  in  which  such  condemned  property  was  found,  the  name 
of  every  person  in  whose  possession  it  was  found  and  the  name  of 
every  person  convicted  of  an  offence  under  the  provisions  of  the 
two  preceding  sections  to  be  published  in  two  newspapers  pub- 
lished in  the  county  in  which  such  property  was  found. 

1872,  231,  §  6.          1876,  180,  §  6.          1894,  491,  §  16. 
1875,  29,  §  6.          P.  S.  58,  §  6. 

Sale  of  Poultry  regulated. 

SECTION  76.  Whoever  knowingly  sells  or  exposes  for  sale 
poultry,  unless  it  is  alive,  before  it  has  been  properly  dressed  by 
the  removal  of  the  crop  and  entrails  if  they  contain  food,  shall  be 
punished  by  a  fine  of  not  less  than  five  nor  more  than  fifty 
dollars  for  each  offence.  Boards  of  health  shall  cause  the  provi- 
sions of  this  section  to  be  enforced  in  their  respective  cities  and 
towns. 

1883,  230.  1887,  94. 


115 


ACTS  OF  1913,  CHAPTER  687. 

SALE  OF  UNWHOLESOME  FOOD. 
Penalty  for  Sale  of  Unwholesome  Pood. 

SECTION  1.  Whoever  sells  or  offers  for  sale  for  food  or  drink 
any  diseased  animal  or  any  product  thereof  or  any  tainted,  dis- 
eased, corrupt,  decayed  or  unwholesome  carcass,  meat,  fish,  veg- 
etables, produce,  fruit  or  provisions  of  any  kind,  except  when 
packed  in  such  a  container  that,  upon  reasonable  inspection,  the 
condition  of  the  contents  thereof  cannot  be  ascertained,  without 
making  the  condition  of  the  thing  sold  or  offered  for  sale  fully 
known  to  the  buyer  shall  be  punished  by  a  fine  of  not  more  than 
two  hundred  dollars,  or  by  imprisonment  for  not  more  than  six 
months,  or  by  both  such  fine  and  imprisonment. 


REVISED  LAWS,  CHAPTER  75,  SECTION  105,  AS  AMENDED  BY  ACTS  OF  1902,  CHAP- 
TER 312,  SECTION  2;  ACTS  OF  1903,  CHAPTER  220,  SECTION  2;  ACTS  OF  1908, 
CHAPTER  329,  SECTION  6;  ACTS  OF  1909,  CHAPTER  474;  AND  ACTS  OF  1912, 
CHAPTER  248,  SECTION  2. 

SLAUGHTER  HOUSES. 
Private  Slaughter  Houses. 

SECTION  105.  The  provisions  of  the  six  preceding  sections  shall 
not  apply  to  a  person  not  engaged  in  such  business  who,  upon  his 
own  premises  and  not  in  a  slaughter  house,  slaughters  his  own 
neat  cattle,  sheep  or  swine,  but  the  carcass  of  any  such  animals 
shall  be  inspected,  and,  unless  condemned,  shall  be  stamped  or 
branded  according  to  the  provisions  of  section  one  hundred  and 
three  of  chapter  seventy-five  of  the  Revised  Laws,  as  set  forth  in 
chapter  two  hundred  and  twenty  of  the  acts  of  the  year  nineteen 
hundred  and  three,  and  as  amended  by  chapter  four  hundred  and 
seventy-one  of  the  acts  of  the  year  nineteen  hundred  and  nine 
and  by  section  five  of  chapter  two  hundred  and  ninety-seven  of 
the  acts  of  the  year  nineteen  hundred  and  eleven,  by  an  inspector 
at  the  time  of  slaughter. 

(Note.  —  The  "six  preceding  sections"  referred  to  are  sections  99 
to  104,  inclusive,  of  Revised  Laws,  chapter  75.  These  sections  pro- 
vide for  the  licensing  of  slaughter  houses.) 


116 


6.    APPLE  GRADING. 

GENERAL  ACTS,    1915,   CHAPTER  261. 

PACKING,  GRADING  AND  SALE  OF  APPLES.  1 
Standard  Barrel  and  Standard  Box  denned. 

SECTION  1.  The  standard  barrel  for  apples  shall  be  of  the 
following  dimensions  when  measured  without  distention  of  its 
parts :  —  length  of  stave,  twenty-eight  and  one  half  inches ; 
diameter  of  heads,  seventeen  and  one  eighth  inches;  distance 
between  heads,  twenty-six  inches;  circumference  of  bulge,  sixty- 
four  inches,  outside  measurement;  and  the  thickness  of  staves 
not  greater  than  four  tenths  of  an  inch:  provided,  that  any  barrel 
of  a  different  form  having  a  capacity  of  seven  thousand  and  fifty- 
six  cubic  inches  shall  be  a  standard  barrel. 

The  standard  box  for  apples  shall  be  of  the  following  dimen- 
sions by  inside  measurement:  eighteen  inches  by  eleven  and  one 
half  inches  by  ten  and  one  half  inches,  without  distention  of  its 
parts,  and  having  a  capacity  of  not  less  than  two  thousand  one 
hundred  seventy-three  and  one  half  cubic  inches. 

Grades  denned. 

SECTION  2  (as  amended  by  G.  A.,  1916,  63,  §  l).  The  standard 
grades  of  apples  when  packed  or  repacked  in  closed  packages 
within  this  commonwealth  shall  be  as  follows :  —  "  Massachusetts 
Standard  Fancy"  shall  include  only  apples  of  one  variety  which 
are  well  matured  specimens,  hand-picked,  above  medium  color  for 
the  variety,  normal  shape,  of  good  and  reasonably  uniform  size, 
sound,  free  from  disease,  insect  and  fungus  injury,  bruises  and 
any  other  defects  except  such  as  are  necessarily  caused  in  the 
operation  of  packing,  and  shall  be  packed  properly  in  clean,  strong 
packages:  provided,  that  apples  of  one  variety  which  are  not  more 
than  three  per  cent  below  the  foregoing  specifications  may  be 
graded  as  "  Massachusetts  Standard  Fancy." 

"Massachusetts  Standard  A"  shall  include  only  apples  of  one 
variety  which  are  well  matured  specimens,  properly  packed,  of 
medium  color  for  the  variety,  normal  shape,  sound,  practically 
free  from  disease,  insect  and  fungus  injury,  bruises  and  other 
defects  except  such  as  "are  necessarily  caused  in  the  operation  of 

1  For  regulations  adopted  by  the  secretary  of  the  Board  of  Agriculture  for  the  enforcement  of 
this  law,  and  also  for  the  United  States  standard  barrel  law  and  United  States  apple-grading  law, 
see  Circular  No.  50,  "Apple  Grading  and  Packing,"  published  by  the  Massachusetts  State  Board  of 
Agriculture. 


117 

packing:  provided,  that  apples  of  one  variety  which  are  not  more 
than  five  per  cent  below  the  foregoing  specifications  may  be 
graded  as  "Massachusetts  Standard  A." 

"Massachusetts  Standard  B"  shall  include  only  apples  of  one 
variety,  which  are  well  matured,  properly  packed,  practically 
normal  shape,  practically  free  from  disease,  insect  and  fungus 
injury  or  any  other  defect  that  materially  injures  the  appearance 
or  useful  quality  of  the  apples,  and  which  may  be  less  than 
medium  color  for  the  variety:  provided,  that  apples  of  one 
variety  which  are  not  more  than  ten  per  cent  below  the  fore- 
going specifications  may  be  graded  as  "Massachusetts  Stand- 
ard B." 

"Ungraded."  Apples  not  conforming  to  the  foregoing  speci- 
fications of  grade,  or,  if  conforming,  not  branded  in  accordance 
therewith,  shall  be  classed  as  ungraded  and  so  branded. 

Use  of  Other  Marks  permitted. 

SECTION  3  (as  amended  by  G.  A.,  1916,  63,  §  #).  The  marks 
indicating  the  grade,  as  above  prescribed,  may  be  accompanied 
by  any  other  designation  of  grade  or  brand  if  such  designation 
is  not  inconsistent  with,  or  marked  more  conspicuously  on  the 
package  than,  the  mark  or  marks  required  by  section  five  of 
this  act. 

Minimum  Size  to  be  marked  on  Package. 

SECTION  4.  The  minimum  size  of  the  fruit  in  all  grades,  in- 
cluding the  ungraded,  shall  be  marked  upon  the  package,  and 
shall  be  determined  by  taking  the  transverse  diameter  of  the 
smallest  fruit  in  the  package  at  right  angles  to  the  stem  and 
blossom  end.  Minimum  sizes  shall  be  stated  in  variations  of  one 
quarter  of  an  inch,  such  as  two  inches,  two  and  one  quarter 
inches,  two  and  one  half  inches,  two  and  three  quarters  inches, 
three  inches,  three  and  one  quarter  inches,  and  so  forth,  in  ac- 
cordance with  the  facts.  Minimum  sizes  may  be  designated  by 
figures  instead  of  words.  The  word  "minimum"  may  be  desig- 
nated by  using  the  abbreviation  "min." 

Closed  Packages  to  be  Branded. 

SECTION  5.  Every  closed  package  of  apples  packed  or  re- 
packed in  the  commonwealth  and  intended  for  sale,  either  within 
or  without  the  commonwealth,  shall  have  marked  in  a  conspicu- 
ous place  on  the  outside  of  the  package  in  plain  letters  a  state- 


118 

tnent  of  the  quantity  of  the  contents,  the  name  and  address  of 
the  packer  or  of  the  person  by  whose  authority  the  apples  were 
packed,  the  true  name  of  the  variety  and  the  grade  and  the 
minimum  size  of  the  apples  contained  therein,  in  accordance  with 
the  provisions  of  sections  two,  three  and  four  of  this  act,  and  the 
name  of  the  state  in  which  they  were  grown.  If  the  true  name 
of  the  variety  is  not  known  to  the  packer  or  other  person  by 
whose  authority  the  apples  are  packed,  the  statement  shall  in- 
clude the  words  "variety  unknown",  and  if  the  name  of  the 
state  in  which  the  apples  were  grown  is  not  known,  this  fact  shall 
also  be  set  forth  in  the  statement.  If  apples  are  repacked,  the 
package  shall  be  marked  "repacked",  and  shall  bear  the  name 
and  address  of  the  repacker,  or  the  name  and  address  of  the 
person  by  whose  authority  it  is  repacked,  in  place  of  that  of  the 
original  packer. 

Style  and  Size  of  Letters  and  Figures  fixed. 

SECTION  6.  The  branding  or  marking  of  barrels  under  the 
provisions  of  this  act  shall  be  in  block  letters  and  figures  of  a 
size  not  less  than  thirty-six  point  Gothic.  The  secretary  of  the 
state  board  of  agriculture  shall  prescribe  rules  and  regulations  as 
to  the  lettering  to  be  used  in  branding  or  marking  other  closed 
packages. 

Packing,  Sale  or  Distribution  of  Adulterated  or  Misbranded  Apples 

prohibited. 

SECTION  7.  It  shall  be  unlawful  for  any  person  to  pack,  sell, 
distribute  or  offer  or  expose  for  sale  or  distribution,  apples  which 
are  adulterated  or  misbranded  within  the  meaning  of  this  act. 

"  Adulterated  "  defined. 

SECTION  8  (a*  amended  by  G.  A.,  1916,  63,  §  3).  For  the  pur- 
poses of  this  act,  apples  packed  in  a  closed  package  shall  be 
deemed  to  be  adulterated  if  their  measure,  quality  or  grade  does 
not  conform  in  every  particular  to  the  brand  or  mark  upon  or 
affixed  to  the  package,  or  if  the  faced  or  shown  surface  gives  a 
false  representation  of  the  contents  of  the  package. 


;d  in  a 


"Misbranded"  defined. 

SECTION  9.     For  the  purposes  of  this  act,  apples  packe( 
closed  package  shall  be  deemed  to  be  misbranded:  - 

First.     If  the  package  is  packed  or  repacked  in  the  common- 


119 

wealth  and  fails  to  bear  all  statements  required  by  sections  two, 
three,  four  and  five  and  in  accordance  with  the  provisions  of 
section  six  of  this  act. 

Second.  If  the  package,  whether  packed  or  repacked  within 
or  without  the  commonwealth  is  falsely  branded,  or  bears  any 
statement,  design  or  device,  regarding  the  apples  contained  there- 
in, which  is  false  or  misleading,  or  if  the  package  bears  any  state- 
ment, design  or  device  indicating  that  the  apples  contained 
therein  are  of  a  specified  Massachusetts  standard  grade,  and  said 
apples,  when  packed  or  repacked,  do  not  conform  to  the  require- 
ments prescribed  by  this  act  for  such  grade. 

Cold-storage  Apples  to  be  inspected. 

SECTION  10  (as  amended  by  G.  A.,  1916,  63,  §  4)-  Apples  which 
have  been  in  cold  storage  shall  not  be  sold  or  distributed,  or  offered 
or  exposed  for  sale  or  distribution,  in  closed  packages  until  they 
have  been  inspected  in  accordance  with  rules  and  regulations  to 
be  prescribed  by  the  secretary  of  the  state  board  of  agriculture. 

Rules  and  Regulations  to  be  made. 

SECTION  11.  The  secretary  of  the  state  board  of  agriculture 
shall  make  rules  and  regulations  for  carrying  out  the  provisions 
of  this  act,  and  he  shall  publish,  on  or  before  the  first  day  of 
September  following  the  passage  of  this  act,  and  after  a  public 
hearing,  rules  for  the  grading  and  packing  of  apples  and  speci- 
fying, for  each  variety  of  apples,  the  minimum  size  which  shall 
be  included  in  the  grade  designated  as  "fancy";  and  he  may 
thereafter  modify  such  rules  and  regulations. 

Inspectors  authorized  to  enter  Places  and  open  Packages. 

SECTION  12.  The  secretary  of  the  state  board  of  agriculture, 
in  person  or  by  deputy,  shall  have  free  access  at  all  reasonable 
hours  to  any  building  or  other  place  where  apples  are  packed, 
stored,  sold,  or  offered  or  exposed  for  sale.  He  shall  also  have 
power  in  person  or  by  deputy  to  open  any  box,  barrel,  or  other 
container,  and  may,  upon  tendering  the  market  price,  take 
samples  therefrom. 

Appropriation  provided. 

SECTION  13.  For  the  purpose  of  carrying  out  the  provisions 
of  this  act  there  may  be  expended  during  the  present  fiscal  year 
a  sum  not  exceeding  one  thousand  dollars,  and  thereafter  such 


120 

annual   expenses   as   may   be  necessary  shall  be  paid  from   the 
annual  appropriation  for  disseminating  useful  information. 

Penalty  fixed. 

SECTION  14.  Any  person  who  adulterates  or  misbrands  apples 
within  the  meaning  of  this  act,  or  who  packs,  repacks,  sells, 
distributes,  or  offers  or  exposes  for  sale  or  distribution,  apples  in 
violation  of  any  provision  of  this  act,  or  who  wilfully  alters, 
effaces  or  removes,  or  causes  to  be  altered,  effaced  or  removed, 
wholly  or  partly,  any  brands  or  marks  required  to  be  put  upon 
any  closed  package  under  the  provisions  of  this  act,  shall  be 
punished  by  a  fine  not  exceeding  fifty  dollars  for  the  first  offence, 
and  by  a  fine  not  exceeding  one  hundred  dollars  for  each  subse- 
quent offence. 

Certain  Persons  exempted  and  Liability  placed. 

SECTION  15.  No  person  who  sells  or  distributes  or  offers  or 
exposes  for  sale  or  distribution  apples  adulterated  or  misbranded 
within  the  meaning  of  this  act  shall  be  deemed  to  have  violated 
any  of  the  provisions  of  this  act,  if  it  shall  appear  that  he  acted 
in  good  faith  solely  as  a  distributor,  or  if  he  shall  furnish  a 
guaranty  signed  by  the  person  from  whom  he  received  the 
apples,  with  the  address  of  such  person,  that  the  apples  are  not 
adulterated  or  misbranded  within  the  meaning  of  this  act.  In 
such  case,  the  person  from  whom  the  distributor  received  the 
apples  shall  be  liable  for  the  acts  of  the  distributor  who  relied 
upon  his  guaranty,  to  the  same  extent  as  the  distributor  would 
have  been  liable  under  the  provisions  of  this  act. 

11  Person  "  and  "  Closed  Package  "  defined. 

SECTION  16.  The  word  "person",  as  used  in  this  act  shall 
include  persons,  firms,  corporations,  societies  and  associations,- 
and  the  acts  of  agents  and  employees  shall  be  construed  to  be  the 
acts  of  their  principals  and  employers  as  well  as  of  the  agents 
and  employees.  The  words  "closed  package"  shall  mean  a 
barrel,  box  or  other  container  the  contents  of  which  cannot  be 
sufficiently  seen  for  purposes  of  inspection  without  opening  the 
container. 

The  act  took  effect  upon  its  passage,  except  that  the  provisions  of 
sections  one,  two,  three,  four,  five,  six,  seven,  eight,  nine,  ten, 
fourteen,  fifteen  and  sixteen  were  not  operative  until  the  first  da\ 
of  July,  in  the  year  nineteen  hundred  and  sixteen. 


rst  day 


121 


VI.    MISCELLANEOUS   STATUTES  RELATING  TO  AGRI- 
CULTURE. 

1.    FENCE  VIEWERS  AND  FIELD  DRIVERS. 
REVISED  LAWS,  CHAPTER  33. 

FENCE  VIEWERS. 
Fences  defined. 

SECTION  1.  Fences  four  feet  high,  in  good  repair,  constructed 
of  rails,  timber,  boards,  iron  or  stone,  and  brooks,  rivers,  ponds, 
creeks,  ditches  and  hedges,  or  other  things  which  the  fence 
viewers  consider  equivalent  thereto,  shall  be  deemed  legal  and 
sufficient  fences. 

C.  L.  145,  §  2.  1785,  52,  §2.  G.  S.  25,  §  1. 

1693-4,  7,  §  1.  R.  S.  19,  §  1.  P.  S.  36,  §  1. 

Eames  v.  Salem  &  Lowell  R.R.  Co.,  98  Mass.  560  (see  page  151). 

Adjoining  Occupants  to  maintain  Fences. 

SECTION  2.  The  occupants  of  adjoining  lands  which  are  en- 
closed with  fences  shall,  so  long  as  both  of  them  improve  the 
same,  maintain  partition  fences  in  equal  shares  between  their 
enclosures,  unless  they  otherwise  agree. 

1698,  12,  §§  2,  4.  1785,  52,  §§  2,  3.  G.  S.  25,  §§  2,  8. 

1742-3,  33.  R.  S.  19,  §§  2,  8.  P.  S.  36,  §§  2,  8. 

Newell  v.  Hill,  2  Met.  180  (see  page  151). 
Thayer  v.  Arnold,  4  Met.  589  (see  page  151). 
Holbrook  v.  McBride,  4  Gray,  220. 
Kennedy  v.  Owen,  134  Mass.  226  (see  page  153). 
Fay  v.  Elliott,  154  Mass.  588  (see  page  148). 

Proceedings  on  Neglect  of  Party. 

SECTION  3.  If  a  person  refuses  or  neglects  to  build,  repair  or 
rebuild  a  partition  fence  which  he  is  required  to  maintain,  any 
person  aggrieved  may  complain  to  two  or  more  of  the  fence 
viewers,  who  after  notice  to  each  party  shall  view  the  same,  and 
if  they  determine  that  it  is  insufficient  and  that  a  partition  fence 
is  required  between  the  lands  of  the  respective  occupants,  they 
shall  so  state  in  writing  to  the  delinquent  occupant,  and  direct 
him  to  repair  or  build  the  same  within  a  reasonable  time,  not 
exceeding  fifteen  days,  and  if  the  fence  is  not  built,  repaired  or 
rebuilt  accordingly,  the  complainant  may  build  or  repair  it. 

134  Mass.  229.  1785,  52,  §  2.  1863,  190,  §  1. 

C.  L.  17,  §  2.  R.  S.  19,  §  3.  1870,  376. 

1693-4,  7,  §  1.  G.  S.  25,  §  3.  P.  S.  36,  §  3. 
1742-3,  33. 

Scott  v.  Dickinson,  14  Pick.  276  (see  page  154). 

Lamb  v.  Hicks,  11  Met.  496  (see  page  152). 

Sears  v.  Inhab.  of  Charlemont,  6  Allen,  437  (see  page  152). 


122 


Remedy  against  Adjoining  Owner  for  Repair  of  Fence. 

SECTION  4.  If  a  deficient  fence  which  has  been  built  up  or 
repaired  by  a  complainant  is,  after  due  notice  to  each  party, 
adjudged  sufficient  by  two  or  more  of  the  fence  viewers,  and  the 
value  thereof  with  their  fees  has  been  ascertained  by  a  certificate 
under  their  hands,  the  complainant  may  demand,  either  of  the 
occupant  or  owner  of  the  land  where  the  fence  was  deficient, 
double  the  amount  so  ascertained;  and  upon  the  neglect  or 
refusal  to  pay  the  same  for  one  month  after  demand,  he  may 
recover  the  same  with  interest  at  one  per  cent  a  month  in  an 
action  of  contract. 

1785,  52,  §  3.  R.  S.  19,  §  4.  G.  S.  25,  §  4.  P.  S.  36,  §  4. 

Rust  v.  Low  &  Stanwood,  6  Mass.  90  (see  page  148). 
Binney  v.  Hull,  5  Pick.  503  (see  page  150). 
Scott  v.  Dickinson,  14  Pick.  276  (see  page  154). 
Lamb  v.  Hicks,  11  Met.  496  (see  page  152). 
Sears  v.  Inhab.  of  Charlemont,  6  Allen,  437  (see  page  152). 
Kennedy  v.  Owen,  131  Mass.  431  (see  page  153). 
Kennedy  v.  Owen,  134  Mass.  226  (see  page  153). 
Day  v.  Dolan,  174  Mass.  524. 

Controversies  as  to  Repairs,  etc. 

SECTION  5.  If  the  rights  of  the  respective  occupants  in  parti- 
tion fences  and  their  obligation  to  maintain  the  same  are  in 
controversy,  either  party  may  apply  to  two  or  more  of  the  fence 
viewers,  who,  after  due  notice  to  each  party  and  a  hearing,  may 
in  writing  assign  to  each  his  share  thereof,  and  may  direct  the 
time  within  which  each  party  shall  erect  or  repair  his  share; 
which  assignment,  being  recorded  in  the  office  of  the  city  or  town 
clerk,  shall  be  binding  upon  the  parties  and  upon  the  succeeding 
occupants  of  the  lands. 

1742-3,  33.  R.  S.  19,  §  5.  P.  S.  36,  §  5. 

1785,  52,  §  3.  G.  S.  25,  §  5. 

Lamb  v.  Hicks,  11  Met.  496  (see  page  152). 
Alger  v.  Pool,  11  Gush.  450  (see  page  153). 


Double  Damages,  when. 

SECTION  6.  If  a  person  refuses  or  neglects  to  erect  and  main- 
tain the  part  of  a  fence  assigned  to  him  by  the  fence  viewers,  it 
may  be  erected  and  maintained  by  any  person  aggrieved,  who  shall 
be  entitled  to  double  the  value  thereof,  which  shall  be  ascer- 
tained and  recovered  in  the  manner  aforesaid. 

1693-4,  7,  §  1.  1785,  52,  §  3.  G.  S.  25,  §  6. 

1742-3,  33.  R.  S.  19,  §  6.  P.  S.  36,  §  6. 


123 


Compensation  for  repairing  more  than  Just  Share. 
SECTION  7.  If  a  partition  fence  is  required  between  the  lands 
of  adjoining  occupants,  and  either  of  them  has,  before  complaint 
made,  voluntarily  erected  the  whole  fence,  or  more  than  his  just 
share  thereof,  or  has  otherwise  become  proprietor  thereof,  the 
fence  viewers  may  order  the  other  occupant  to  pay  the  value  of 
so  much  thereof  as  may  be  assigned  to  him  to  repair  or  maintain, 
to  be  ascertained  and  recovered  as  provided  in  this, chapter. 

R.  S.  19,  §  7.  1863,  190,  §  1.  P.  S.  36,  §  7. 

G.  S.  25,  §  7.  1870,  376. 

Scott  v.  Dickinson,  14  Pick.  276  (see  page  154). 
Lamb  c.  Hicks,  11  Met.  496  (see  page  152). 


Fences,  how  and  where  made,  when  Lands  are  bounded  by  Water. 

SECTION  8.  If  lands  of  different  persons,  which  are  required  to 
be  fenced, .  are  divided  by  a  river,  brook,  pond  or  creek,  and  one 
of  the  occupants  refuses  or  neglects  to  join  in  making  a  partition 
fence  or  they  disagree  respecting  the  same,  two  or  more  of  the 
fence  viewers  shall,  upon  application,  forthwith  view  such  river, 
brook,  pond  or  creek;  and  if  they  determine  that  it  is  not  suffi- 
cient as  a  fence,  that  it  is  impracticable  to  fence  on  the  true 
boundary  line  without  unreasonable  expense  and  that  a  partition 
fence  is  required,  they  shall,  after  notice  to  the  parties,  determine 
how  or  on  which  side  the  fence  shall  be  set  up  and  maintained,  or 
whether  partly  on  the  one  side  and  partly  on  the  other,  as  to 
them  shall  appear  just,  and  shall  reduce  their  determination  to 
writing;  and  if  either  party  refuses  or  neglects  to  make  and 
maintain  his  part  of  the  fence  according  to  such  determination, 
it  may  be  made  and  maintained  as  before  provided,  and  the 
delinquent  party  shall  be  subject  to  the  same  cost  and  charges, 
and  they  shall  be  recovered  in  like  manner. 

1740-1,  19, §  1.  1760-1,  21.  1779-80,  18.  G.  S   25,  5  9 

1745-6,17.  1770-1,5.  1785,52,54.  P   S   36   §9' 

1752-3,  17.  1775-6,  14.  R.  S.  19,  §  9. 

Lamb  ».  Hicks,  11  Met.  496  (see  page  152). 

Improved  Land  in  Common,  without  Partition  Fences,  may  be  divided. 
SECTION  9.  If  land  belonging  to  two  persons  in  severalty  has 
been  occupied  in  common  without  a  partition  fence  between 
them,  and  one  of  the  occupants  desires  to  occupy  his  part  in 
severalty  and  the  other  occupant  refuses  or  neglects  on  demand  to 
divide  the  line  where  the  fence  ought  to  be  built,  or  to  build  a 
sufficient  fence  on  his  part  of  the  line  when  divided,  the  party 


124 

desiring  it  may  have  the  same  divided  and  assigned  by  two  or 
more  of  the  fence  viewers  in  the  manner  provided  in  this  chapter; 
and  the  fence  viewers  may  in  writing  assign  a  reasonable  time, 
having  regard  to  the  season,  for  making  the  fence;  and  if  the 
occupant  complained  of  does  not  make  his  part  of  the  fence 
within  the  time  so  assigned,  the  other  party  may,  after  having 
made  up  his  part  df  the  fence,  make  up  the  part  of  such  occu- 
pant, and  recover  therefor  double  the  expense  thereof,  with  the 
fees  of  the  fence  viewers,  in  the  manner  aforesaid. 

1785,  52,  §  5.  G.  S.  25,  §  10.  1870,  376. 

R.  S.  19,  §  10.  1863,  190.  P.  S.  36,  §  10. 

Kennedy  t>.  Owen,  131  Mass.  431  (see  page  153). 
Fay  v.  Elliott,  154  Mass.  588  (see  page  148). 

Maintenances  of  Fences.     Land,  how  laid  Common. 

SECTION  10.  If  a  division  of  fence  between  the  owners  of  im- 
proved land  has  been  made  either  by  fence  viewers  or  under  an 
agreement  in  writing  between  the  parties  which  has  been  recorded 
in  the  office  of  the  clerk  of  the  city  or  town,  the  several  owners 
of  such  land  and  their  heirs  and  assigns  shall  erect  and  maintain 
said  fences  agreeably  to  such  division;  but  if  a  person  lays  his 
land  common  and  determines  not  to  improve  any  part  of  the 
same  adjoining  the  fence  so  divided,  and  gives  six  months'  notice 
of  his  determination  to  all  the  occupants  of  adjoining  land,  he  shall 
not  be  required  to  keep  up  or  maintain  said  fence  during  the 
time  that  his  land  lies  common  and  unimproved. 

1822,  60.  R.  S.  19,  §  15.  G.  S.  25,  §  11.  P.  S.  36,  §  11. 

Field  v.  Nantucket,  1  Gush.  11  (see  page  150). 
Kennedy  v.  Owen,  134  Mass.  226  (see  page  153). 

Purchase  of  Right  in  Fence. 

SECTION  11.  If  one  person  ceases  to  improve  his  land  or  lays 
open  his  enclosure,  he  shall  not  take  away  any  part  of  the  parti- 
tion fence  belonging  to  him  and  adjoining  the  next  enclosure,  if 
the  owner  or  occupant  thereof  pays  the  reasonable  value  thereof, 
as  determined  in  writing  by  two  or  more  of  the  fence  viewers. 

C.  L.  19,  §  7.  1742-3,  33.  R.  S.  19,  §  11.  P.  S.  36,  §  12. 

1698,  12,  §  4.  1785,  52,  §  6.  G.  S.  25,  §  12. 

If  Unimproved  Land  Enclosed,  etc.,  Person  Benefited  shall  pay,  etc. 

SECTION  12.  If  unenclosed  land  is  afterward  enclosed  or  used 
for  depasturing,  the  occupant  or  owner  thereof  shall  pay  for 
one-half  of  each  partition  fence  standing  upon  the  line  between 
it  and  the  enclosed  land  of  any  other  occupant  or  owner,  the 


125 

value  thereof,  as  determined  in  writing  by  two  or  more  of  the 
fence  viewers;  and  if  thereupon  such  occupant  or  owner  neglects 
or  refuses,  for  thirty  days  after  demand,  to  pay  one-half  of  the 
value,  the  proprietor  thereof  may  maintain  an  action  of  contract 
therefor  and  for  the  costs  of  ascertaining  the  same;  but  the 
occupant  or  owner  of  unenclosed  land  on  the  island  of  Nan- 
tucket  which  is  used  only  for  depasturing  shall  not  be  subject  to 
the  provisions  of  this  section. 

C.  L.  19,  §  7.  1742-3,  33.  R.  S.  19,  §  12.  G.  S.  25,  §  13. 

1698,  12,  §  4.  1785,  52,  §  6.  1847,  102.  P.  S.  36,  §  13. 

Field  v.  Nantucket,  1  Gush.  11  (see  page  150). 
Fay  ».  Elliott,  154  Mass.  588  (see  page  148). 

Fence  Viewers  may  establish  Division  Lines,  when. 
SECTION  13.  Fence  viewers  may  determine  whether  a  partition 
fence  is  required  between  the  lands  of  respective  occupants.  If 
the  division  line  between  their  lands  is  in  dispute,  or  unknown, 
they  may  designate  a  line  on  which  the  fence  shall  be  built  and 
may  employ  a  surveyor  therefor;  and  such  line  shall,  for  the 
purpose  of  maintaining  a  fence,  be  deemed  the  division  line 
between  such  lands,  until  it  is  determined  that  the  true  line  is  in 
another  place,  and,  until  so  determined,  all  provisions  of  law 
relative  to  the  erection,  maintenance  and  protection  of  fences 
shall  be  applicable  to  the  fence  erected,  or  to  be  erected,  on  such 
line. 

1863,  190,  §  1.  1870,  376.  v        P.  S.  36,  §  14. 

Fay  ».  Elliott,  154  Mass.  588  (see  page  148). 

Removal  to  and  Rebuilding  of  Fence  on  True  Line. 

SECTION  14.  If  it  is  determined  that  the  true  division  line  is  in 
another  place,  each  occupant  shall  remove  his  part  of  the  fence 
to,  and  rebuild  the  same  on  such  line;  and  in  case  of  neglect  or 
refusal  by  either  to  remove  and  rebuild  his  share  thereof,  the 
other  may  apply  to  two  or  more  of  the  fence  viewers,  who  shall 
view  the  premises  and  assign  a  time  within  which  the  fence  shall 
be  removed  and  rebuilt,  and  shall  give  the  delinquent  party 
notice  thereof;  and  if  such  party  does  not  remove  and  rebuild 
the  fence  within  the  time  so  assigned,  the  other  party  may 
remove  and  rebuild  the  same  and  recover  double  the  expense 
thereof,  with  the  fees  of  the  fence  viewers,  to  be  ascertained  and 
recovered  in  the  manner  provided  in  section  four. 

1863,  190,  §  2.  P.  S.  36,  §  15. 


126 


Fence  Viewers,  when  Fences  are  on  Town  Lines. 

SECTION  15.  If  the  line  upon  which  a  partition  fence  is  to  be 
made  or  divided  is  a  boundary  line  of  a  city  or  town  or  is  partly 
in  one  and  partly  in  another  city  or  town,  a  fence  viewer  shall  be 
taken  from  each  place. 

1785,  52,  §  6.  R.  S.  19,  §  13.  G.  S.  25,  §  14.  P.  S.  36,  §  16. 

Water  Fences,  how  made. 

SECTION  16.  A  water  fence,  or  fence  running  into  the  water, 
shall,  unless  otherwise  agreed  by  the  parties,  be  built  by  them  in 
equal  shares;  and  they  shall  have  like  remedies  as  in  case  of 
partition  fences. 

1740-1,  19,  §  3.  1785,  52,  §  7.  R.  S.  19,  §  14.  G.  S.  25,  §  15.        P.  S.  36,  §  17. 

Penalty  for  Fence  Viewer's  Neglect  of  Duty. 

SECTION  17.  A  fence  viewer  who,  when  requested,  unreason- 
ably neglects  to  perform  any  duty  required  of  him  in  this  chap- 
ter shall  forfeit  five  dollars,  to  be  recovered  by  action  of  tort  to 
the  use  of  the  city  or  town,  or  on  complaint  to  the  use  of  the 
commonwealth,  and  shall  also  be  liable  for  all  damages  to  the 
party  injured. 

1698,  12,  §  1.  1756-7,  24.       '  R.  S.  19,  §  17. 

1753-4,29,§1.  1785,52,  §8.  G.  S.  25,  §  16. 

Fees  of  Fence  Viewers. 

SECTION  18.  Each  fence  viewer  shall  be  paid  at  the  rate  of 
two  dollars  a  day  for  the  time  during  which  he  is  employed. 
Such  payment  shall  be  made  by  all  or  by  such  of  the  parties  in 
dispute,  and  in  such  proportions,  as  shall  be  determined  by  a 
certificate  in  writing  under  the  hands  of  the  fence  viewers  acting 
in  each  case.  If  any  person  or  persons,  who  are  so  required  to 
pay  the  whole  or  any  portion  of  said  fees,  neglect  to  pay  the  fence 
viewers  within  thirty  days  after  the  certificate  had  been  de- 
livered, the  fence  viewers  may  recover,  in  an  action  of  tort, 
double  the  amount  of  the  fees  due  from  such  delinquent  person. 

1698,  12,  §  1.  1756-7,  24.  R.  S.  19,  §  18.  1862,  93. 

1753-4,  29,  §  1.  1785,  52,  §  8.  G.  S.  25,  §  17.  P.  S.  36,  §  19. 

Lamb  v.  Hicks,  11  Met.  496  (see  page  152). 


127 


Fence  a  Nuisance,  when. 

SECTION  19.  A  fence  or  other  structure  in  the  nature  of  a 
fence  which  unnecessarily  exceeds  six  feet  in  height  and  is  mali- 
ciously erected  or  maintained  for  the  purpose  of  annoying  the 
owners  or  occupants  of  adjoining  property,  shall  be  deemed  a 
private  nuisance.  Any  such  owner  or  occupant  who  is  injured 
either  in  the  comfort  or  enjoyment  of  his  estate  thereby  may 
have  an  action  of  tort  for  damages  according  to  the  provisions  of 
chapter  one  hundred  and  eighty-six. 

*.'..!  / 

1887,  348. 

Hideout  v.  Knox,  148  Mass.  368. 

Rice  v.  Moorhouse,  150  Mass.  482. 

Spaulding  v.  Smith,  162  Mass.  543  (see  page  154). 

Smith  v.  Morse,  148  Mass.  407. 


POUNDS    AND    IMPOUNDING    OF    CATTLE.     FIELD    DRIVERS. 

Pounds  to  be  maintained. 

SECTION  20.  Each  city  and  town  shall  maintain  sufficient 
pounds,  and  for  neglect  thereof  for  three  months  shall  forfeit 
fifty  dollars;  and  shall  annually  appoint  a  keeper  of  each  pound 
therein. 

C.  L.  124.  1788,  65,  §  1.  1848,  272. 

1698,  6,  §  1.  1834,  184,  §§  1,  4.  G.  S.  25,  §§  18,  20. 

1728-9,  5.  R.  S.  19,  §§  19-21.  P.  S.  36,  §§  20,  22. 

Anthony  v.  Anthony,  6  Allen,  408  (see  page  162). 


Penalty  for  injuring. 

SECTION  21.  Whoever  wilfully  injures  a  city  or  town  pound 
shall  be  punished  by  a  fine  of  not  more  than  fifty  dollars  or  by 
imprisonment  for  not  more  than  ninety  days. 

1834,  184,  §  8.  R.  S.  19,  §  24.  G.  S.  25,  §  19.  P.  S.  36,  §  21. 

Beasts  at  Large  without  Keeper  to  be  taken  up. 

SECTION  22.  Every  field  driver  shall  take  up  horses,  asses, 
mules,  neat  cattle,  sheep,  goats  or  swine,  going  at  large  in  the 
highways  or  townways,  or  on  common  and  unimproved  land, 
within  his  city  or  town,  and  not  under  the  care  of  a  keeper;  and 
for  any  such  cattle  or  beasts  so  going  at  large  on  the  Lord's  day, 
the  field  driver  or  any  other  inhabitant  of  the  city  or  town 
may,  in  an  action  of  tort,  recover  for  each  beast  the  same  fees 


128 


which  the  field  driver  is  entitled  to    receive  for  distraining  like 
beasts. 

1698,  6,  §  2.  1798,  19.  R.  S.  19,  §  22.  P.  S.  36,  §  23. 

1788,  44,  §  2;  65,  §  2.  1834,  184,  §  4.  G.  S.  25,  §  21. 

Bruce  v.  Holden,  21  Pick.  187  (see  page  157). 
Wild  v.  Skinner,  23  Pick.  251  (see  page  156). 
Pickard  v.  Howe,  12  Met.  198  (see  page  158). 
Coffin  ».  Vincent,  12  Gush.  98  (see  page  156). 
Crippen  v.  Byron,  4  Gray,  314. 
Dean  v.  Lindsey,  16  Gray,  264  (see  page  155). 
Parker  v.  Jones,  1  Allen,  270  (see  page  155). 
Cleverly  t.  Towle,  3  Allen,  39  (see  page  157). 
Anthony  v.  Anthony,  6  Allen,  408  (see  page  162). 
Leonard  v.  Doherty,  174  Mass.  570. 
Sanderson  v.  Lawrence,  2  Gray,  178  (see  page  157). 
Bruce  v.  White,  4  Gray,  345  (see  page  161). 


Beasts  at  Large  without  Keeper  to  be  impounded. 

SECTION  23.  Beasts  so  taken  up  and  distrained  by  a  field 
driver  shall  be  forthwith  impounded  in  the  city  or  town  pound, 
and  the  keeper  shall  furnish  them  while  there  with  suitable  food 
and  water. 

1788,  65,  §  2.  R.  S.  113,  §  1.  P.  S.  36,  §  24. 

1834,  184,  §  4.  G.  S.  25,  §  22. 

Folger  v.  Hinckley,  5  Cush.  263  (see  page  160). 

Byron  v.  Crippen,  4  Gray,  312. 

Phillips  v.  Bristol,  131  Mass.  426  (see  page  155). 

Fees  of  Field  Driver  and  Pound  Keeper. 

SECTION  24.  The  field  driver  shall  be  entitled  to  ten  cents 
each  for  sheep  and  goats,  and  fifty  cents  each  for  other  beasts, 
so  taken  up  by  him,  and  the  pound  keeper  shall  be  entitled  to 
four  cents  each  for  the  animals  so  impounded;  but  if  more  than 
ten  sheep  are  taken  up  at  the  same  time,  the  fees  for  all  above 
that  number  shall  be  only  five  cents  each. 

1788,  65,  §  2.  R.  S.  113,  §  2.  1863,  178. 

1834,  184,  §  4.  G.  S.  25,  §  23.  P.  S.  36,  §  25. 

Phillips  P.  Bristol,  131  Mass.  426  (see  page  155). 


Fees  of  Field  Driver  and  Pound  Keeper  to  be  paid  by  Owner  of  Beasts. 

SECTION  25.  The  pound  keeper  shall  not  deliver  to  the  owner 
any  beasts  so  impounded  until  the  owner  pays  him  his  fees,  the 
expense  of  keeping  the  beasts,  and  the  fees  of  the  field  driver 
which,  when  received,  he  shall  pay  to  the  field  driver. 

1834,  184,  §  4.  R.  S.  113,  §  3.  G.  S.  25,  §  24.  P.  S.  36,  §  26. 

Folger  v.  Hinckley,  5  Cush.  263  (see  page  160). 


129 


Distraint  of  Beasts  doing  Damage. 

SECTION  26.  If  a  person  is  injured  in  his  land  by  horses,  asses, 
mules,  neat  cattle,  sheep,  goats  or  swine,  he  may  recover  his 
damages  by  an  action  against  the  owner  of  the  beasts,  or  by  dis- 
training the  beasts  doing  the  damage  and  proceeding  therewith 
as  hereinafter  directed;  but  if  the  beasts  were  lawfully  on  the 
adjoining  lands  and  escape  therefrom  through  the  neglect  of  the 
person  injured  to  maintain  his  part  of  the  division  fence  the 
owner  shall  not  be  liable  nor  the  beasts  distrained. 

1753-4,  29,  §  3.  1788,  65,  §  3.  R.  S.  113,  §  4.  P.  S.  36,  §  27. 

1756-7,  24.  1834,  184,  §  5.  G.  S.  25,  §  25. 

Little  v.  Lothrop,  5  Greenl.  356  (see  page  149). 
Stackpole  v.  Healy,  16  Mass.  33  (see  page  149). 
Rust  v.  Low  &  Stanwood,  6  Mass.  90  (see  page  148). 
Sherman  v.  Braman,  13  Met.  407  (see  page  158). 
Smith  v.  Gates,  21  Pick.  55  (see  page  162). 
Coffin  v.  Vincent,  12  Cush.  98  (see  page  156). 
Merrick  v.  Work,  10  Allen,  544  (see  page  160). 
Hartford  r.  Brady,  114  Mass.  466  (see  page  151). 
Newhouse  ».  Hatch,  126  Mass.  364  (see  page  159). 
Phillips  v.  Bristol,  131  Mass.  426  (see  page  155). 
Conners  v.  Loker,  134  Mass.  510  (see  page  161). 

Impounding. 

SECTION  27.  The  beasts  so  distrained  shall  be  impounded  in  the 
city  or  town  pound,  or  in  some  suitable  place,  under  the  immedi- 
ate care  and  inspection  of  the  distrainor;  and  he  shall  furnish 
them  with  suitable  food  and  water  while  they  remain  impounded. 

C.  L.  18,  §  3;  20;  145,  §  2.        1788,  65,  §  3.  R.  S.  113,  §  5.  P.  S.  36,  §  28. 

1698,  6,  §  3.  1834,  184,  §  5.  G.  S.  25,  §  26. 

Sherman  c.  Braman,  13  Met.  407  (see  page  158). 
Newhouse  v.  Hatch,  126  Mass.  364  (see  page  159). 

Impounding  of  Beasts  on  Premises  of  Field  Driver. 

SECTION  28.  If  beasts  are  taken  up  and  distrained  by  a  field 
driver  in  a  town  which  adopts  the  provisions  of  this  section  or 
has  adopted  the  corresponding  provisions  of  earlier  laws,  he  may 
impound  them  on  his  own  premises;  and  for  the  purposes  of  this 
chapter  he  shall  be  considered  a  pound  keeper,  and  such  place  on 
his  premises  shall  be  considered  a  town  pound  relative  to  beasts 
therein  impounded. 

1869,  366.  P.  S.  36,  §  29. 

Person  distraining  to  state  Demand. 

SECTION  29.  If  the  beasts  are  impounded  in  the  city  or  town 
pound,  'the  distrainor  shall  leave  with  the  pound  keeper  a 
memorandum  in  writing  under  his  hand,  stating  the  cause  of 


130 

impounding  and  the  amount  which  he  demands  from  the  owner 
for  the  damage  done  by  them,  and  also  for  the  daily  charges  of 
feeding  them;  and  if  they  are  impounded  in  any  other  place,  he 
shall  on  demand  give  a  like  memorandum  to  the  owner. 

1788,  65,  §  4.  R.  S.  113,  §  6.  P.  S.  36,  §  30. 

1834,  184,  §  5.  G.  S.  25,  §  27. 

Bruce  ».  Holden,  21  Pick.  187  (see  page  157). 
Wild  v.  Skinner,  23  Pick.  251  (see  page  156). 
Pickard  v.  Howe,  12  Met.  198  (see  page  158). 
Sherman  v.  Braman,  13  Met.  407  (see  page  158). 
Merrick  v.  Work,  10  Allen,  544  (see  page  160). 
Newhouse  v.  Hatch,  126  Mass.  364  (see  page  159). 


Beasts  not  delivered  until  Costs  paid. 

SECTION  30.  The  pound  keeper  shall  not  deliver  the  beasts  to 
the  owner  until  his  fees,  the  amount  so  demanded  by  the  dis- 
trainor  for  the  damages  and  charges  aforesaid,  the  expense,  if 
any,  of  advertising  and  all  other  legal  costs  and  expenses  have 
been  paid  to  him. 

1834,  184,  §  5.  R.  S.  113,  §  7.  G.  S.  25,  §  28.  P.  S.  36,  §  31. 

Folger  v.  Hinckley,  5  Gush.  263  (see  page  160). 

Notice  to  be  given  Owner  or  Keeper. 

SECTION  31.  Whoever  impounds  beasts  shall,  within  twenty- 
four  hours  thereafter,  give  notice  in  writing,  containing  a  descrip- 
tion of  the  beasts  and  a  statement  of  the  time,  place  and  cause  of 
impounding,  to  the  owner  or  person  having  the  care  of  them,  if 
known  and  living  within  six  miles  of  the  place  of  impounding,  by 
delivering  it  to  him  or  leaving  it  at  his  place  of  abode. 

C.  L.  18,  §  3;  125,  146,  §  3.  1788,  65,  §  4.  R.  S.  113,  §  8.  P.  S.  36,  §  32. 

1698,  6,  §  3.  1834,  184,  §  6.         G.  S.  25,  §  29. 

Bruce  v.  Holden,  21  Pick.  187  (see  page  157). 
Wild  v.  Skinner,  23  Pick.  251  (see  page  156). 
Pickard  t.  Howe,  12  Met.  198  (see  page  158). 
Coffin  ».  Field,  7  Gush.  355. 

Sanderson  v.  Lawrence,  2  Gray,  178  (see  page  157). 
Cleverly  v.  Towle,  3  Allen,  39  (see  page  157). 
Merrick  v.  Work,  10  Allen,  544  (see  page  160). 
Phillips  v.  Bristol,  131  Mass.  426  (see  page  155). 
Field  v.  Jacobs,  12  Met.  118  (see  page  159). 


Notice  to  be  posted  and  published. 

SECTION  32.  If  there  is  no  person  entitled  to  such  notice,  the 
person  impounding  the  beasts  shall,  within  forty-eight  hours 
thereafter,  post  a  like  notice  in  a  public  place  in  the  city  or  town 
and  in  a  public  place  in  each  of  any  two  adjoining  cities  or 
towns,  if  within  four  miles  from  the  place  where  the  beasts  were 


131 

taken;  and  if  their  value  exceeds  thirty  dollars  and  no  person 
claims  them  within  seven  days  after  the  day  of  impounding,  a 
like  notice  shall  be  published  three  weeks  successively  in  a  news- 
paper, if  any,  published  within  twenty  miles  of  the  pound,  the 
first  publication  to  be  within  fifteen  days  after  the  day  of 
impounding. 

1834,  184,  §  6.  R.  S.  113,  §  9.  ,  G.  S.  25,  §  30.  P.  S.  36,  §  33. 

Pickard  v.  Howe,  12  Met.  198  (see  page  158). 
Cleverly  v.  Towle,  3  Allen,  39  (see  page  157). 

Amount  due  from  Owner  or  Keeper,  how  determined. 
SECTION  33.  If  the  owner  or  keeper  of  the  beasts  is  dissatisfied 
with  the  claim  of  the  person  impounding  them,  he  may  have  the 
amount  for  which  he  is  liable  determined  by  two  disinterested 
persons,  who  shall  be  appointed  and  sworn  by  a  justice  of  the 
peace  or  by  the  city  or  town  clerk. 

C.  L.  18,  §  3.  1834,  184,  §  6.  G.  S.  25,  §  31. 

1788,  65,  §  4.  R.  S.  113,  §  10.  P.  S.  36,  §  34. 

SECTION  34.  If  the  amount  for  which  the  beasts  have  been 
impounded  and  detained  is  not  paid  within  fourteen  days  after 
notice  of  the  impounding  has  been  given  as  before  directed,  or 
after  the  last  publication  of  such  notice,  the  person  who  im- 
pounded them  shall  apply  to  a  justice  of  the  peace,  or  to  the 
city  or  town  clerk  who  shall  issue  a  warrant  to  two  disinterested 
persons  who  shall  be  appointed  and  sworn  by  the  justice  or 
clerk,  and  they  shall  determine  the  amount  due  from  the  owner 
or  keeper  of  the  beasts  for  the  damages,  costs  and  expenses  for 
which  they  have  been  impounded  and  detained,  including  a 
reasonable  compensation  for  their  own  services. 

1703-4,  10.  1834,  184,  §  6.  G.  S.  25,  §  32. 

1788,  65,  §  4.  R.  S.  113,  §  11.  P.  S.  36,  §  35. 

Smith  v.  Gates,  21  Pick.  55  (see  page  162). 

If  not  paid,  Beasts  to  be  sold. 

SECTION  35.  If  the  amount  so  determined  is  not  forthwith 
paid,  the  person  who  impounded  the  beasts  shall  cause  them  to 
be  sold  by  auction  in  the  city  or  town  where  they  are  impounded, 
first  advertising  the  sale  by  posting  up  a  notice  thereof  for 
twenty-four  hours  at  some  public  place  in  such  city  or  town. 

C.  L.  146,  §  3.  1788,  65,  §  4.  R.  S.  113,  §  12.  P.  S.  36,  §  36. 

1703-4,  10.  1834,  184,  §  6.  G.  S.  25,  §  33. 


132 


Disposition  of  Proceeds. 

SECTION  36.  The  proceeds  of  such  sale,  after  paying  all  said 
damages,  costs,  expenses  and  charges  for  advertising  and  selling 
the  beasts,  shall  be  deposited  in  the  city  or  town  treasury  for  the 
use  of  the  owner,  upon  proof  of  his  right  thereto  within  two  years 
from  the  sale. 

C.  L.  146,  §  3.  1760-1,  21.  1779-80,  18.  R.  S.  113,  §  13. 

1703-4,  10.  1770-1,  5.  1788,  65,  §  37.  G.  S.  25,  §  34. 

1757-8,  10.  1775-6,  14.  1834,  184,  §  6.  P.  S.  36,  §  37. 


Escaped  or  Rescued  Beasts  may  be  retaken. 

SECTION  37.  If  beasts  which  have  been  lawfully  distrained  or 
impounded  escape  or  are  rescued,  the  pound  keeper,  field  driver 
or  other  person  who  distrained  them  may,  at  any  time  within 
seven  days  thereafter,  retake,  hold  and  dispose  of  them  as  if 
there  had  been  no  escape  or  rescue. 

1834,  184,  §  7.  R.  S.  113,  §  14.  G.  S.  25,  §  35.  P.  S.  36,  §  38. 

Penalty  for  rescuing  Beasts  distrained. 

SECTION  38.  Whoever  rescues  beasts  lawfully  distrained  or 
impounded  shall  be  liable  in  an  action  of  tort  to  any  person 
injured  for  all  damages  sustained  thereby  and  the  fees  and 
charges  incurred  before  the  rescue;  and  he  shall  also  forfeit  not 
less  than  five  nor  more  than  twenty  dollars. 

C.  L.  125,  §  2.  1834,  184,  §  8.  R.  S.  113,  §  15. 

1698,  6,  §  4.  1  Mass.  168.  G.  S.  25,  §  36. 

1788,  65,  §  6.  4  Mass.  471.  P.  S.  36,  §  39. 

Vinton  u.  Vinton,  17  Mass.  342. 

Commonwealth  v.  Beale,  5  Pick.  514  (see  page  161). 

Field  c.  Coleman,  5  Gush.  267. 


Legality  of  Distress,  how  tried. 

SECTION  39.  The  defendant  in  an  action  for  rescuing  beasts 
distrained  or  impounded  shall  not  be  allowed  to  allege  or  give  in 
evidence  the  insufficiency  of  the  fences  or  any  other  fact  or 
circumstance  to  show  that  the  distress  or  impounding  was 
illegal;  but  if  there  is  such  ground  of  objections  to  the  pro- 
ceedings he  may  avail  himself  thereof  in  an  action  of  replevin. 

1788,  65,  §  6.  R.  S.  113,  §  16.  G.  S.  25,  §  37.  P.  S.  36,  §  40. 

Melody  v.  Reab,  4  Mass.  471. 
Commonwealth  v.  Beale,  5  Pick.  514  (see  page  161). 


133 


Rams  and  He-goats,  when  not  to  go  at  Large. 

SECTION  40.  If  the  owner  of  a  ram  or  he-goat  suffers  it  to  go 
at  large  out  of  his  enclosure  between  the  first  day  of  July  and 
the  twenty-fifth  day  of  December,  he  shall,  if  prosecuted  within 
thirty  days  next  after  such  ram  or  he-goat  is  found  going  at 
large,  forfeit  five  dollars  for  each  offence. 

1824,  98,  §  1.  R.  S.  19,  §  23.  G.  S.  25,  §  38.  P.  S.  36,  §  41. 


2.    TRESPASS  LAWS. 
REVISED  LAWS,  CHAPTER  208. 
Pulling  down  Stone  Walls. 

SECTION  91.  Whoever  wilfully  and  without  right  pulls  down 
or  removes  any  portion  of  a  stone  wall  or  fence  which  is  erected 
or  maintained  for  the  purpose  of  enclosing  land  shall  be  punished 
by  a  fine  of  not  more  than  ten  dollars. 

1901,  298. 

ACTS  OP  1911,  CHAPTER  173. 
Powers  of  Commissioners  on  Fisheries  and  Game. 

The  commissioners  on  fisheries  and  game  and  their  duly  au- 
thorized deputies  may  arrest  without  a  warrant  any  person 
found  in  the  act  of  wilfully  pulling  down  a  stone  wall  or  fence,  or 
otherwise  violating  the  provisions  of  section  ninety-one  of  chap- 
ter two  hundred  and  eight  of  the  Revised  Laws. 

REVISED  LAWS,  CHAPTER  208. 
Malicious  Killing  or  Poisoning  of  Cattle. 

SECTION  98.  Whoever  wilfully  and  maliciously  kills,  maims  or 
disfigures  any  horse,  cattle  or  other  beast  of  another  person,  or 
wilfully  and  maliciously  administers  or  exposes  poison  with 
intent  that  it  shall  be  taken  or  swallowed  by  any  such  beast, 
shall  be  punished  by  imprisonment  in  the  state  prison  for  not 
more  than  five  years  or  by  a  fine  of  not  more  than  one  thousand 
dollars  and  imprisonment  in  jail  for  not  more  than  one  year. 

1804,  131,  §  4.  R.  S.  126,  §  39.  G.  S.  181,  §  80.  P.  S.  203,  §  93. 

Commonwealth  v.  Leach,  1  Mass.  59. 
Commonwealth  ».  Walden,  3  Cush.  558. 
Commonwealth  x.  Brooks,  9  Gray,  299. 
Commonwealth  u.  Towle,  9  Gray,  304. 
,  Commonwealth  v.  McLaughlin,  105  Mass.  460. 


134 


Cutting  Timber,  Wood,  Grain,  etc. 

SECTION  99  (as  amended  by  1904,  444,  §  -0-  Whoever  wilfully 
cuts  down  or  destroys  timber  or  wood  standing  or  growing  on  the 
land  of  another,  or  carries  away  any  kind  of  timber  or  wood  cut 
down  or  lying  on  such  land,  or  digs  up  or  carries  away  stone,  ore, 
gravel,  clay,  sand,  turf  or  mould  from  such  land,  or  roots, 
nuts,  berries,  grapes  or  fruit  of  any  kind  or  any  plant  there 
being,  or  cuts  down  or  carries  away  sedge,  grass,  hay  or  any  kind 
of  corn,  standing,  growing  or  being  on  such  land,  or  cuts  or  takes 
therefrom  any  ferns,  flowers  or  shrubs,  or  carries  away  from  a 
wharf  or  landing  place  any  goods  in  which  he  has  no  interest 
or  property,  without  the  license  of  the  owner  thereof,  shall 
be  punished  by  imprisonment  for  not  more  than  six  months  or 
by  a  fine  of  not  more  than  five  hundred  dollars,  and  if  the 
offence  is  committed  on  the  Lord's  day  or  in  disguise  or  secretly 
in  the  night  time  the  imprisonment  shall  not  be  less  than  five 
days  nor  the  fine  less  than  five  dollars. 

1698,  7,  §§  1,  2.  1785,  28,  §  1.  G.  S.  161,  §§  81,  84. 

1723-4,  10,  §§  1,  2.  1818,  3,  §§  2,  4.  1868,  321. 

1726-7,  3,  §§  1,  2.  R.  S.  126,  §§  44,  45.  P.  S.  203,  §§  94,  97. 

1727,  8. 

Moyle  v.  Drake,  141  Mass.  241. 


Penalty  for  Wilful  Injuries  to  Trees,  Fences,  etc. 

SECTION  100  (as  amended  by  1902,  544,  §  30).  Whoever  wil- 
fully and  maliciously  or  wantonly  cuts  down,  destroys  or  injures 
a  tree  which  is  not  his  own,  standing  for  any  useful  purpose,  or 
whoever  wilfully  and  maliciously  or  wantonly  breaks  glass  in  a 
building  which  is  not  his  own,  or  whoever  wilfully  and  mali- 
ciously breaks  down,  injures,  mars  or  defaces  a  fence  belonging 
to  or  enclosing  land  which  is  not  his  own,  or  wilfully  and  mali- 
ciously throws  down  or  opens  a  gate,  bars  or  fence,  and  leaves  the 
same  down  or  open,  or  maliciously  and  injuriously  severs  from 
the  freehold  of  another  any  produce  thereof  or  anything  attached 
thereto,  shall  be  punished  by  imprisonment  for  not  more  than 
six  months  or  by  a  fine  of  not  more  than  five  hundred  dollars. 


Trespass  in  Orchard,  Garden,  etc. 

SECTION  105.  Whoever  wilfully  and  maliciously  enters  an 
orchard,  nursery,  garden  or  cranberry  meadow,  and  takes  away, 
mutilates  or  destroys  a  tree,  shrub  or  vine  or  steals,  takes  and 
carries  away  any  fruit  or  flower,  without  the  consent  of  the 
owner  thereof,  shall  be  punished  by  a  fine  of  not  more  than  five 


135 

hundred    dollars    or    by    imprisonment   for   not    more    than    six 
months. 

C.  L.  13,  §  1.  1855,  457.  1868,  321. 

1698,  7,  §  1.  G.  S.  161,  §  83.  P.  S.  203,  §  96. 

Commonwealth  v.  Dougherty,  6  Gray,  349. 

Trespass  by  entering  Orchard  with  Intent. 

SECTION  106  (as  amended  by  1902,  544,  §  88).  Whoever  wil- 
fully, intentionally  and  without  right  enters  upon  the  orchard, 
garden  or  other  improved  land  of  another,  with  intent  to  cut, 
take,  carry  away,  destroy  or  injure  the  trees,  grain,  grass,  hay,  fruit 
or  vegetables  there  growing  or  being,  shall  be  punished  by  imprison- 
ment for  not  more  than  six  months  or  by  a  fine  of  not  more  than 
five  hundred  dollars;  and  if  the  offence  is  committed  on  the 
Lord's  day,  or  in  disguise,  or  secretly  in  the  night  time,  the 
imprisonment  shall  not  be  less  than  five  days  nor  the  fine  less 
than  five  dollars. 

1818,  3,  §§  1,  '4.  G.  S.  161,  §  84.  P.  S.  203,  §  97. 

R.  S.  126, §  45.  1868,  321. 

Suffering  Animals  to  trespass  on  Land. 

SECTION  107.  Whoever,  having  the  charge  or  custody  of 
sheep,  goats,  cattle,  horses,  swine  or  fowl,  wilfully  suffers  or 
permits  them  to  enter  on,  pass  over  or  remain  on  any  orchard, 
garden,  mowing  land  or  other  improved  or  enclosed  land  of 
another,  after  being  forbidden  in  writing  or  by  notice  posted 
thereon  by  the  owner  or  occupant  thereof,  or  by  the  authorized 
agent  of  such  owner  or  occupant,  shall  be  punished  by  a  fine  of 
not  more  than  ten  dollars. 

1878,  168.  1879,  70.  P.  S.  203,  §  98. 

Defacement  of  Notice  against  Trespassers. 

SECTION  111.  Whoever  wilfully  tears  down,  removes  or  defaces 
any  notice  posted  on  land  by  the  owner,  lessee  or  custodian 
thereof,  warning  persons  not  to  trespass  thereon,  shall  be  pun- 
ished by  a  fine  of  not  more  than  twenty-five  dollars. 

1890,  403,  §  2. 

Arrest  without  Warrant  of  Trespasser  on  Lord's  Day. 

SECTION  121.  Whoever  is  discovered  in  the  act  of  wilfully 
injuring  a  fruit  or  forest  tree  or  of  committing  any  kind  of 
malicious  mischief  on  the  Lord's  day  may  be  arrested  without  a 
warrant  by  a  sheriff,  deputy  sheriff,  constable,  watchman,  police 


136 

officer  or  other  person,  and  detained  in  jail  or  otherwise  until  a 
complaint  can  be  made  against  him  for  the  offence,  and  he  be 
taken  upon  a  warrant  issued  upon  such  complaint;  but  such 
detention  without  warrant  shall  not  continue  more  than  twenty- 
four  hours. 

1851,  246.  1852,  245.  G.  S.  161,  §  86.  P.  S.  203,  §  104. 

ACTS  OF  1904,  CHAPTER  444. 
Extracts  from  Certain  Acts  to  be  printed,  etc. 

SECTION  2.  The  secretary  of  the  state  board  of  agriculture 
shall  cause  to  be  printed  such  extracts  from  sections  ninety-one, 
ninety-nine,  one  hundred  and  five,  one  hundred  and  six,  one 
hundred  and  eleven  and  one  hundred  and  twenty-one  of  chapter 
two  hundred  and  eight  of  the  Revised  Laws  as  in  his  opinion  will 
tend  to  prevent  depredations  of  farm  and  forest  lands. 

Distribution,  Sale,  etc.,  of  Posters. 

SECTION  3  (as  amended  1914,  ®39,  §  1).  It  shall  be  the  duty  of 
the  said  secretary  to  cause  copies  of  said  extracts  to  be  printed 
on  durable  material,  suitable  to  be  affixed  to  trees  or  otherwise 
to  be  posted  in  the  open  air,  to  furnish  not  exceeding  five  copies 
in  any  one  year  without  charge  to  any  reputable  person  applying 
therefor,  to  sell  additional  copies  at  not  less  than  the  cost  thereof, 
and  annually  on  or  before  the  first  day  of  April,  to  send  one  such 
copy  to  each  post  office  in  the  commonwealth.  All  amounts  re- 
ceived from  the  sale  of  said  posters  shall  be  paid  into  the  treasury 
of  the  commonwealth. 

3.    REGISTRATION  OF  STALLIONS. 

REVISED  LAWS,  CHAPTER  102. 
Registration  of  Stallions. 

SECTION  167.  The  owner  or  keeper  of  a  stallion  for  breeding 
purposes  shall,  before  advertising  the  service  thereof,  file  a  certifi- 
cate of  the  name,  color,  age,  size  and  pedigree,  as  fully  as  obtain- 
able, of  said  stallion,  and  of  the  name  of  the  person  by  whom  he 
was  bred,  with  the  clerk  of  the  city  or  town  in  which  said  stallion 
is  owned  or  kept,  who  shall  upon  payment  of  a  fee  of  twenty- 
five  cents,  record  the  same  in  a  book  to  be  kept  for  that  purpose. 
Whoever  neglects  to  make  and  file  such  certificate  shall  recover 
no  compensation  for  the  services  of  his  stallion,  and  whoever 
knowingly  and  wilfully  makes  a  false  certificate  shall  be  punished 
by  a  fine  of  one  hundred  dollars  for  each  offence. 


137 


4.    DESTRUCTION  OF  INSECT  PESTS. 

ACTS  OF  1914,  CHAPTER  340. 
Destruction  of  Insect  Pests  on  Lands  adjacent  to  Certain  Park  Lands. 

SECTION  1.  The  metropolitan  park  commission  is  hereby  au- 
thorized, whenever  it  shall  deem  such  action  advisable,  to  destroy 
brown  tail  moths,  gypsy  moths  and  other  insect  pests  on  lands 
near  or  adjoining  lands  under  the  care  and  control  of  said  com- 
mission and  to  a  distance  of  one  thousand  feet  therefrom:  pro- 
vided, however,  that  said  commission  shall  first  have  been  re- 
quested in  writing  by  the  owner  of  any  such  land  to  do  said 
work  and  that  such  owner  shall  either  have  advanced  to  the 
commonwealth  for  the  purpose  the  cost  of  such  work,  as  esti- 
mated by  said  commission,  or,  if  the  commission  shall  so  require, 
shall  have  given  a  bond  to  the  commonwealth  to  an  amount,  and 
with  a  principal  and  surety  or  sureties  satisfactory  to  said  com- 
mission, to  reimburse  the  commonwealth  for  the  cost  of  such 
work. 

Action  of  Contract  may  be  maintained  for  Expenses  incurred. 

SECTION  2.  The  treasurer  and  receiver  general  of  the  common- 
wealth may  maintain  an  action  of  contract  in  his  own  name 
against  any  owner  of  land  upon  which  work  has  been  done  by 
said  commission  as  herein  authorized,  or  against  the  principal 
and  surety  or  sureties  on  any  bond  given  as  aforesaid,  for  the 
expenses  incurred  by  said  commission  in  doing  such  work. 


5.    SUPPRESSION  OF  TENT  CATERPILLAR,  LEOPARD 
MOTH  AND  ELM  BEETLE. 

ACTS  OP  1914,  CHAPTER  404. 
Suppression  of  Certain  Insect  Pests  in  Cities  and  Towns. 

SECTION  1.  The  city  forester,  superintendent  or  other  person 
having  charge  of  the  suppression  of  gypsy  and  brown  tail  moths 
in  each  city  and  town  in  the  commonwealth,  or,  where  there  is 
no  such  person,  the  tree  warden,  may  destroy  within  the  limits  of 
his  city  or  town  the  tent  caterpillar,  leopard  moth  and  elm  beetle, 
if  authorized  so  to  do  by  the  mayor  and  city  council  or  commis- 
sion in  cities,  or  by  the  selectmen  in  towns. 


138 


Owners  to  be  taxed  for  Work  done  on  Private  Land. 

SECTION  2.  For  the  purposes  of  this  act  the  city  forester  or 
other  officer  designated  in  section  one  of  this  act  may  enter  upon 
private  land,  and  the  owners  of  private  land  may  be  taxed  for 
work  done  under  the  provisions  of  section  one  of  this  act  in  the 
manner  provided  by  sections  six  and  seven  of  chapter  three  hun- 
dred and  eighty-one  of  the  acts  of  the  year  nineteen  hundred  and 
five  and  acts  in  amendment  thereof  and  in  addition  thereto: 
provided,  however,  that  nothing  contained  in  this  act  shall  require 
the  commonwealth  to  pay  any  part  of  any  such  expense,  other 
than  for  the  suppression  of  the  gypsy  and  brown  tail  moths,  that 
no  land  shall  be  assessed  under  the  provisions  of  this  act  which 
has  been  assessed  the  maximum  amount  provided  by  said  sec- 
tions six  and  seven  and  amendments  thereof  for  the  suppression 
of  the  gypsy  and  brown  tail  moths,  and  that  the  aggregate  assess- 
ment on  any  parcel  of  private  land  for  the  suppression  of  the 
tent  caterpillar,  leopard  moth,  elm  beetle  and  gypsy  and  brown 
tail  moths  shall  not  exceed  the  maximum  provided  by  said  sec- 
tions six  and  seven  and  the  amendments  thereof. 


6.    INSPECTION   CHARGES  FORBIDDEN. 

GENERAL  ACTS  OF  1915,  CHAPTER  109. 

Charges  for  the  Inspection  of  Live  Stock,  Dairies  or  Farm  Buildings  pro- 
hibited. 

SECTION  1.  It  shall  be  unlawful  for  any  state  or  municipal 
inspector  or  other  officer  to  charge  any  fee  for  the  inspection  of 
any  live  stock  or  of  any  dairy,  barn  or  stable  on  any  farm  in 
which  milk  is  produced  for  sale. 


7.    POULTRY  THIEVING. 

ACTS  OF  1914,  CHAPTER  594. 
Detention  of  Persons  unlawfully  entering  Places  where  Poultry  are  kept. 

SECTION  1.  Whoever,  with  intent  to  commit  larceny,  breaks 
or  enters,  or  enters  in  the  night  without  breaking  any  building  or 
enclosure  wherein  are  kept  or  confined  any  kind  of  poultry,  may 
be  detained  or  kept  in  custody  in  a  convenient  place  by  the 
owner  of  the  poultry,  or  by  his  agent  or  employee,  for  not  more 
than  twenty-four  hours,  Sunday  excepted,  until  a  complaint  can 
be  made  against  him  for  the  offence  and  he  be  taken  upon  a 
warrant  issued  upon  such  complaint. 


139 


Penalty. 

SECTION  2.  Whoever  is  convicted  of  such  trespassing  or 
breaking  or  entering  shall  be  punished  by  a  fine  of  not  more  than 
five  hundred  dollars  or  by  imprisonment  in  the  house  of  correc- 
tion for  not  more  than  two  years. 

GENERAL  ACTS  OP  1915,  CHAPTER  140. 

POULTRY-THIEVING  POSTERS. 
Posters  relative  to  Poultry  Thieving  may  be  printed  and  distributed. 

SECTION  1.  The  secretary  of  the  state  board  of  agriculture 
shall  cause  to  be  printed  on  durable  material,  proper  for  posting 
in  the  open  air  on  buildings  or  otherwise,  copies  of  chapter  five 
hundred  and  ninety-four  of  the  acts  of  the  year  nineteen  hun- 
dred and  fourteen.  He  shall  furnish  not  more  than  five  copies 
in  any  one  year  without  charge  to  any  person  applying  therefor, 
and  may  sell  additional  copies  at  not  less  than  the  cost  thereof, 
and  annually  on  or  before  the  first  day  of  April  shall  send  one 
such  copy  printed  on  paper  to  each  post  office  in  the  common- 
wealth. All  amounts  received  from  the  sale  of  said  posters  shall 
be  paid  into  the  treasury  of  the  commonwealth. 


8.    LIABILITY   FOR   INJURIES   TO    FARM   LABOR. 

ACTS  OF  1911,  CHAPTER  751,  PART  I. 

Damages  for  Personal  Injury. 

SECTION  1.  In  an  action  to  recover  damages  for  personal 
injury  sustained  by  an  employee  in  the  course  of  his  employ- 
ment, or  for  death  resulting  from  personal  injury  so  sustained,  it 
shall  not  be  a  defense: 

1.  That  the  employee  was  negligent; 

2.  That  the  injury  was  caused  by  the  negligence  of  a  fellow 
employee; 

3.  That  the  employee  had  assumed  the  risk  of  the  injury. 

Law  not  to  apply  in  Certain  Cases. 

SECTION  2.  The  provisions  of  section  one  shall  not  apply  to 
actions  to  recover  damages  for  personal  injuries  sustained  by 
domestic  servants  and  farm  laborers  (see  pages  163,  164,  165). 


140 


VII.     OPINIONS   OF  THE  ATTORNEY- GENERAL. 

1.    AGRICULTURAL  AND  HORTICULTURAL  SOCIETIES. 
Election  of  Delegate  to  Board  of  Agriculture. 

[1  OPINIONS  ATTORNEY-GENERAL,  406.] 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Hampden  Agricultural  Society,  at  which 
proceedings  were  held  for  the  election  of  a  member  of  the  State 
Board  of  Agriculture,  the  balloting  resulted  as  follows:  the  whole 
number  of  votes  cast  was  46,  of  which  B  had  41,  F  4  and  P  1. 
Of  the  votes  cast  for  B,  39  were  cast  by  proxy. 

There  being  no  provision  in  the  charter  or  by-laws  of  the  so- 
ciety regulating  the  mode  of  voting  by  proxy,  or  conferring  the 
right  so  to  vote,  no  member  had  such  right;  and  since  no  quorum 
voted,  the  votes  cast  by  proxy  being  thrown  out,  no  person  was 
duly  elected  by  said  society  as  a  member  of  the  State  Board  of 
Agriculture. 


Right  to  Representation  on  Board  of  Agriculture. 

[1  OPINIONS  ATTORNEY-GENERAL,  90.] 

The  right  of  an  agricultural  society  to  representation  in  the 
Board  of  Agriculture  in  any  year  depends  on  its  title  to  receive  a 
bounty  that  year. 

A  society's  title  to  bounty  and  to  representation  is  to  be  deter- 
mined by  its  returns  between  January  10  and  the  first  Wednes- 
day of  February  each  year. 

A  society  is  not  entitled  to  a  bounty  in  any  year  unless  it  has 
awarded  and  paid  premiums  to  the  same  amount  during  the 
preceding  year. 

The  application  of  a  bounty  to  the  general  encouragement  or 
improvement  of  agriculture  or  manufacture  does  not  by  itself 
entitle  a  society  to  a  bounty  or  to  representation  in  the  Board. 

The  requirement  of  $1,000  invested  capital  in  order  to  be  en- 
titled to  a  bounty  applies  to  all  societies,  and  means  an  actually 
existing  invested  capital. 

The  title  of  a  society  to  representation  in  the  Board  accrues 
year  by  year,  and  the  membership  of  a  representative  of  a  society 
terminates  when  his  society  ceases  to  be  entitled  to  representa- 
tion, though  within  three  years  from  the  time  when  he  took  his 
seat,  subject  to  reinstatement  when  the  society  again  acquires  the 
right  to  representation. 


141 


VIII.    DIGEST  OF  SUPREME  COURT  DECISIONS. 

1.    DRAINAGE  OF  WET  LANDS. 

Constitutionality  of  Drainage  Law. 

TALBOT  v.  HUDSON. 

16  Gray,  417. 
[EXTRACT  FROM  DECISION  AT  PAGE  428.] 

Nor  are  we  without  precedent  for  acts  of  legislation  by  which 
private  property  has  been  taken  for  the  purpose  of  improving 
land  and  rendering  it  fertile  and  productive.  The  St.  of  1795, 
c.  62  (R.  L.,  c.  195),  for  the  improvement  of  meadows,  swamps 
and  low  lands,  recognizes  the  right  of  taking  private  property  for 
the  purpose  of  redeeming  lands  from  the  effects  of  stagnant  water 
and  of  being  overflowed  by  obstructions  in  brooks  and  rivers. 
This  statute,  re-enacted  by  the  Rev.  Sts.,  c.  115  (R.  L.,  c.  195), 
has  been  long  in  use,  and  many  proceedings  under  it  have  taken 
place,  some  of  which  have  passed  under  the  judicial  cognizance 
of  this  court.  But  in  none  has  the  validity  of  the  statute  been 
doubted  or  denied. 

TURNER  v.  NYE. 

154  Mass.  579. 

[EXTRACT  FROM  DECISION  AT  PAGES  581  AND  582.] 

MORTON,  J.  "...  we  think  the  plaintiffs  misapprehend  the 
constitutional  provision  which  applies  to  the  act  in  question. 
The  statute  was  not  an  exercise  on  the  part  of  the  Legislature  of 
the  right  of  eminent  domain,  but  was  enacted  under  the  provision 
which  gives  it  power  '  to  make,  ordain,  and  establish,  all  manner 
of  wholesome  and  reasonable  orders,  laws,  statutes,  and  ordi- 
nances, ...  so  as  the  same  be  not  repugnant  or  contrary  to  this 
constitution,  as  they  shall  judge  to  be  for  the  good  and  welfare  of 
this  commonwealth,  and  for  the  government  and  ordering  thereof, 
and  of  the  subjects  of  the  same/  Const.  Mass.,  Part  2,  c.  1, 
Art.  4^.  .  .  Upon  this  provision  also  stand  the  cranberry  act,  so 
called  (St.  1866,  c.  206) ;  the  act  in  regard  to  draining  meadows, 
swamps,  marshes,  beaches  and  low  lands,  with  its  authority 
to  commissioners  to  open  the  floodgates  of  a  mill,  or  to  erect 
a  temporary  dam  on  the  lands  of  another  person  and  assess  the 
damages  upon  the  proprietors  (Pub.  Sts.,  c.  189;  see  Wurts  v. 
Hoagland,  114  U.  T.  606). 


142 

"...  The  mill  acts,  and  these  and  other  like  statutes  (of 
which  various  illustrations  might  be  given),  rest  upon  the  princi- 
ple that  property  may  be  so  situated  or  of  such  a  character  that 
the  absolute  right  of  the  individual  owner  to  a  certain  extent 
must  yield  to  or  be  modified  by  corresponding  rights  on  the  part 
of  other  owners,  or  by  what  is  deemed  on  the  whole  to  be  for  the 
public  welfare." 1 

Powers  of  Drainage  Commissioners. 
DAY  v.  HURLBURT. 

11  Met.  321. 

Under  the  Rev.  Sts.,  c.  115  (R.  L.,  c.  195),  commissioners  who 
are  appointed  to  effect  improvements  in  meadows  or  low  lands 
have  no  authority  to  assess  damages  in  favor  of  any  one  who  is 
not  a  party  to  the  proceedings  instituted  for  such  improvements, 
besides  those  who  are  mentioned  in  section  14  of  that  chapter. 
Hence  when  the  owners  of  certain  meadows  petition  the  court  of 
common  pleas  for  proceedings  to  improve  the  same,  and  commis- 
sioners are  appointed  who  cause  a  drain  to  be  made  whereby 
water  is  thrown  upon  the  adjoining  meadows  of  other  owners  to 
their  injury,  those  owners  have  no  remedy,  under  the  provisions 
of  that  chapter,  for  the  injury  so  sustained. 

Powers  of  County  Commissioners  in  Relation  to  Drainage. 

SHERMAN  v.  TOBEY. 

3  Allen,  7. 

Under  Gen.  Sts.,  c.  148  (R.  L.,  c.  195),  county  commissioners 
have  no  power  to  authorize  an  owner  of  marshy  or  wet  land  to 
dig  a  ditch  into  his  neighbor's  land  and  discharge  the  water  upon 
the  same  to  his  injury,  but  only  to  authorize  him  to  dig  a  ditch 
across  the  same,  or  to  some  outlet  where  the  water  may  be  dis- 
charged without  injury. 

Return  of  Commissioners  under  Drainage  Act. 
WRIGHT  v.  LEONARD. 

4  Gray,  150. 

A  deed  of  low  lands  sold  for  nonpayment  of  the  costs  of  im 
provement  assessed  thereon  by  commissioners  appointed  by  the 
court  of  common  pleas,  pursuant  to  Rev.  Sts.,  c.  115  (R.  L.,  c. 

1  See  also  Proprietors  of  Mills  on  Charles  River  v.  Proprietors  of  Mills  on  Mill  Creek  and 
Neponset  Rivers,  7  Pick.  207. 


143 

195),  passes  no  title,  unless  the  return  of  the  commissioners  to  the 
court  shows  the  appointment  of  the  collector  by  whom  the  deed 
was  made.  , 

2.    DOG  DAMAGES. 

Liability  for  Injuries  by  Dog.    Constitutionality  of  Dog  Law. 

JOHNSON  v.  GRISWOLD. 

179  Mass.  580. 

In  St.  1889,  c.  454  (R.  L.,  c.  102,  §  151  /.),  giving  damages  for 
sheep  killed  or  injured  by  dogs,  section  1  provides  that  when  the 
damages  are  appraised  the  county  treasurer  shall  submit  the 
certificate  of  damages  to  the  county  commissioners,  who  within 
thirty  days  shall  examine  the  bill  for  damages  and  make  such 
investigation  as  they  think  proper,  and  issue  an  order  upon  the 
county  treasurer  for  all  or  any  part  of  the  damage.  Held,  that 
the  requirement  in  regard  to  the  time  of  the  examination  is  for 
the  benefit  of  persons  claiming  damages,  and,  in  the  absence  of  a 
request  by  an  interested  party  for  an  early  examination,  is  only 
directory,  and  the  failure  of  the  commissioners  to  act  within 
thirty  days  does  not  render  their  subsequent  action  in  favor  of  an 
injured  party  invalid. 

Under  St.  1889,  c.  454  (R.  L.,  c.  102,  §  151  /.),  giving  damages 
for  sheep  killed  or  injured  by  dogs,  the  return  under  section  1  of 
a  certificate  of  damages  which  contains  a  slight  inaccuracy  as  to 
the  ownership  of  the  sheep  but  complies  with  the  essential 
requirement  of  an  oath  as  a  preliminary  to  the  appraisal,  and 
which  contains  enough  to  identify  the  proceedings  and  justify 
the  introduction  of  oral  testimony  to  correct  the  error  as  to  the 
title,  does  not  leave  the  case  as  if  there  were  no  certificate,  but 
satisfies  the  statutory  requirement  that  a  certificate  shall  be 
returned. 

St.  1889,  c.  454  (R.  L.,  c.  102,  §  151  /.),  and  St.  1894,  c.  309 
(R.  L.,  c.  102,  §  155),  giving  damages  for  sheep  killed  or  injured 
by  dogs,  are  constitutional. 

Dog  Damage  done  to  Sheep.     Liability  of  Owner  to  County. 
Measure  of  Damages. 

WORCESTER  v.  ASHWORTH. 

160  Mass.  186. 

The  owner  of  a  dog  engaged  with  other  dogs  in  doing  damage 
to  sheep  is  liable  to  the  county,  under  Pub.  Sts.,  c.  102,  §  106 
(R.  L.,  c.  102,  §  162),  for  all  the  damages  so  done,  and  not  alone 


144 

for  that  part  done  by  his  own  dog;    and  it  makes  no  difference 
that  one  of  such  dogs  belonged  to  the  owner  of  the  sheep. 

In  an  action  by  a  county,  under  Pub.  Sts.,  c.  102,  §  106  (R.  L., 
c.  102,  §  162),  as  qualified  by  St.  1889,  c.  454,  to  recover  of  the 
owner  of  a  dog  for  the  damages  done  by  the  dog  to  the  sheep,  the 
assessment  of  damages  by  the  county  commissioners  is  not  con- 
clusive, but  the  defendant  is  entitled  to  show  that  the  amount 
awarded  by  them  is  excessive. 

Right  to  Reimbursement  for  Injury  by  Dogs. 
OSBORN  v.  SELECTMEN  OF  LENOX. 

2  Allen,  207. 

Under  Gen.  Sts.,  c.  88,  §  64  (R.  L.,  c.  102,  §  151),  one  who 
suffers  loss  by  reason  of  the  worrying,  maiming  or  killing  of  his 
horse  by  dogs  is,  upon  proof  thereof,  entitled  to  an  order  from 
the  selectmen  of  the  town  wherein  the  damage  is  done,  upon  the 
treasurer  of  the  town,  for  the  amount  of  his  loss,  to  be  paid  from 
the  fund  created  by  taxes  on  dogs  according  to  the  provisions  of 
that  statute;  and  if  the  selectmen  refuse  to  draw  such  order, 
upon  proof  of  the  facts,  a  writ  of  mandamus  will  be  granted 
ordering  them  to  do  so. 

Right  to  kill  Dog  doing  Damage. 

NESBETT  v.  WILBUR. 

177  Mass.  200. 

In  an  action  for  killing  a  dog  which  was  engaged  in  killing  the 
defendant's  hens  on  the  defendant's  premises,  the  judge  having 
found  that  the  defendant  rightly  believed  that  there  was  no  other 
way  to  save  them  than  to  kill  the  dog,  and  that  he  was  justified 
in  so  doing;  a  request  for  a  ruling  that  Pub.  Sts.,  c.  102,  §  94 
(R.  L.,  c.  102,  §  147),  giving  a  right  to  any  person  to  kill  a  dog 
found  out  of  the  enclosure  or  immediate  care  of  its  owner, 
worrying  neat  cattle,  sheep,  or  lambs,  takes  away  the  rights  of 
the  defendant  at  common  law,  and  that  not  having  complied 
with  the  statute  the  defendant  is  liable,  is  rightly  refused. 


145 


Liability  of  Owner  or  Keeper  for  Damages  by  Dog. 
HATHAWAY  v.  TINKHAM.  « 

148  Mass.  85. 

[PART  OF  REPORTER'S  HEADNOTE.] 

The  owner  or  keeper  of  a  dog  is  liable,  under  the  Pub.  Sts., 
c.  102,  §  93  (R.  L.,  c.  102,  §  146),  for  an  injury  done  by  it  to  a 
person  in  the  exercise  of  due  care,  although  such  injury  was  done 
in  play,  and  without  any  vicious  intent  on  the  part  of  the  dog. 

BOULESTER   V.   PARSONS. 

161  Mass.  182. 

The  leading  of  a  horse  behind  a  wagon  on  a  country  road  is 
not  such  contributory  negligence  as  will  preclude  the  owner  from 
maintaining  an  action,  under  the  Pub.  Sts.,  c.  102,  §  93  (R.  L., 
c.  102,  §  146),  against  the  owner  of  a  dog  by  whom  the  horse  is 
bitten  while  being  so  led. 

SHERMAN  v.  FAVOUR. 

I  Allen,  191. 

The  keeper  of  a  dog  is  liable,  under  the  Rev.  Sts.,  c.  58,  §  13 
(R.  L.,  c.  102,  §  146),  for  double  the  amount  of  damages  sustained 
in  consequence  of  a  sudden  attack  by  the  dog  upon  the  plaintiff's 
horse,  and  barking  and  leaping  at  the  horse's  head,  thereby 
frightening  him  and  rendering  him  unmanageable. 

BREWER  ET  AL.  v.  CROSBY. 

II  Gray,  29. 

[PART  OF  REPORTER'S  HEADNOTE.] 

The  remedy  givtn  by  the  Rev.  Sts.,  c.  58,  §  13  (R.  L.,  c.  102, 
§  146),  to  "any  person  injured"  by  a  dog  against  its  owner  or 
keeper  includes  injuries  to  property. 

BUDDINGTON    V.    SHEARER    ET   AL. 

20  Pick.  477. 

In  an  action  of  trespass,  upon  Rev.  Sts.,  c.  58,  §  13  (R.  L., 
c.  102,  §  146),  which  provides  that  every  owner  or  keeper  of  any 
dog  shall  forfeit  to  any  person  injured  by  such  dog  double  the 
amount  of  damages  sustained  by  him  .  .  .  where  the  injury  was 


146 

done  by,  two  dogs  together,  belonging  to  several  owners,  it  was 
held  that  each  owner  was  liable  only  for  the  damage  done  by  his 
own  dog,  and  not  for  the  whole  damage  done  by  the  two  dogs. 

Liability  for  Loss  of  Services  caused  by  Dog  Bite. 

MCCARTHY  v.  GUILD. 

12  Met.  291. 

The  owner  of  a  dog  that  injures  a  minor  child  so  that  the 
parent,  by  reason  of  such  injury,  loses  the  child's  services,  and  is 
put  to  expenses  for  his  cure,  is  liable  to  the  parent,  under  Rev. 
Sts.,  c.  58,  §  13  (R.  L.,  c.  102,  §  146),  for  double  the  damages  by 
him  thus  sustained. 

Owner's  Knowledge  of  Propensities  of  Dog.    Damages. 
PRESSEY  v.  WIRTH. 

3  Allen,  191. 

In  an  action  under  Rev.  Sts.,  c.  58,  §  13  (R.  L.,  c.  102,  §  146), 
to  recover  double  the  amount  of  damages  sustained  from  the  bite 
of  a  dog,  it  is  not  necessary  to  prove  that  the  owner  knew  of  the 
vicious  character  of  his  dog,  or  that  the  dog  was  accustomed  to 
bite;  and  the  defendant  has  no  ground  of  exception  to  an  instruc- 
tion to  the  jury,  that,  in  case  they  should  find  for  the  plaintiff, 
they  should  first  compute  his  damages  on  the  principle  of  exact 
and  literal  compensation  for  his  pain  and  suffering,  and  then 
double  the  amount. 

Validity  of  Town  By-laws  licensing  Dogs. 
COMMONWEALTH  v.  Dow. 

10  Met.  382. 

A  by-law  of  a  town,  made  under  Rev.  Sts.,  c.  58,  §  10,  con- 
cerning the  licensing,  regulating  and  restraining  of  dogs  going  at 
large  within  the  town,  will  be  construed  to  apply  only  to  dogs 
owned  or  kept  in  the  town,  although  in  its  terms  it  applies  "to 
any  person  permitting  his  dog  to  go  at  large  within  the  town;" 
and  if  it  is  otherwise  valid  it  may  be  enforced  against  the  owner 
or  keeper  of  a  dog  within  the  town. 

The  same  section  in  a  by-law  of  a  town  imposed  a  penalty  oi 
$10  on  any  person  permitting  his  dog  to  go  at  large  in  the  town, 
unless  the  dog  should  be  licensed  to  go  at  large,  and  should  wear 
a  collar  with  the  name  of  the  owner  or  keeper,  and  the  word 


147 

"licensed"  distinctly  marked  thereon;  and  the  further  penalty 
of  $10  if  said  dog  should  wear  a  collar  without  license.  Held, 
that  although  the  latter  part  of  this  section  might  be  repugnant 
to  the  Rev.  Sts.,  c.  58,  §  12  (R.  L.,  c.  102,  §  143),  and  therefore 
void,  yet  that  the  former  part  was  valid,  and  that  the  penalty 
thereby  imposed  was  recoverable  of  a  person  who  permitted  his 
dog  to  go  at  large  without  being  licensed. 

The  penalties,  imposed  by  the  by-laws  of  the  town  of  New- 
Bedford  in  relation  to  dogs,  may  be  recovered  by  complaint 
before  the  police  court  of  that  town. 

A  dog  is  "going  at  large"  in  a  town  if  he  be  loose  and  following 
the  person  who  has  charge  of  him  through  the  streets  of  the 
town  at  such  a  distance  that  he  cannot  exercise  a  control  over 
the  dog  which  will  prevent  his  doing  mischief. 


3.    SALES  AND  MARKETING. 

Sale  of  Oats  and  Meal. 

EATON  v.  KEGAN. 

114  Mass.  433. 

By  the  Gen.  Sts.,  c.  49,  §  63  (R.  L.,  c.  57,  §  25),  sales  of  oats 
and  meal  must  be  by  the  bushel,  and  an  action  cannot  be  main- 
tained for  their  price  if  sold  by  the  bag. 

Slaughter  of  Calves  under  Four  Weeks  Old. 
COMMONWEALTH  v.  RAYMOND. 

97  Mass.  567. 

In  an  indictment  under  the  St.  of  1866,  c.  253,  §  1  (R.  L., 
c.  56,  §  74),  for  killing,  for  the  purpose  of  sale,  a  calf  less  than 
four  weeks  old  it  isjiot  necessary  to  allege,  nor  in  support  of  the 
charge  is  it  necessary  at  the  trial  to  prove,  that  the  defendant 
knew  that  the  calf  was  less  than  four  weeks  old;  nor  that  he 
intended  to  sell  the  veal  in  this  Commonwealth  or  to  an  inhabit- 
ant thereof;  nor  what  use  the  purchaser  intended  to  make  of  the 
veal. 

In  an  indictment  under  the  St.  of  1866,  c.  253,  §  1  (R.  L., 
c.  56,  §  74),  the  words  "with  intent  to  sell,"  are  equivalent  to 
the  words  "for  the  purpose  of  sale." 


148 


Sale  of  Cider.    Word  "Makers." 

COMMONWEALTH  v.  BOYDEN. 

483  Mass.  1. 

The  word  "makers"  in  St.  1894,  c.  489,  §  1  (R.  L.,  c.  100,  §  1), 
includes  both  farmers  and  manufacturers,  and  neither  can  sell 
cider  without  a  license  if  it  contains  more  than  three  per  cent  of 
alcohol,  measured  in  the  manner  provided  by  statute. 

Eight  of  City  to  require  Permits  from  Marketmen. 

COMMONWEALTH  v.  CLAY. 

(Decided,  1916.) 

The  city  of  Salem  may  require  a  permit,  and  the  payment  of  a 
fee  thereunder,  from  persons  desiring  to  sell  produce  in  the  public 
market  o£  said  city,  before  they  may  occupy  a  stand  in  said 
market. 

4.    FENCES  AND  FENCE  VIEWERS. 
Obligations  of  Citizens  to  make  and  repair  Fences. 
RUST  v.  Low  AND  STANWOOD. 

6  Mass.  90. 

The  statutes  made  by  the  Legislature  of  the  Commonwealth 
are  the  foundation  of  all  the  obligations  imposed  on  the  citizens 
by  law  to  make  and  repair  fences. 

The  tenant  of  a  close  is  not  obliged  to  fence,  but  against  cattle, 
which  are  rightfully  on  the  adjoining  land. 

Liability  of  Owner  of  Unenclosed  Land  for  Line  Fence. 

FAY  v.  ELLIOTT. 
154  Mass.  588. 

The  owner  of  unenclosed  land,  who  has  leased  the  same  and 
does  not  occupy  it,  is  not  liable,  under  the  Pub.  Sts.,  c.  33 
(R.  L.,  c.  33),  to  the  owner  of  adjoining  land  for  double  the 
expense  of  building  a  division  fence  and  the  fees  of  the  fence 
viewers. 


149 


Right  of  Public  on  Highway.    Liability  of  Owner  for  Straying 

Cattle. 

STAC£POLE  v.  HEALY. 

16  Mass.  33. 

The  public  have  no  right  in  a  highway,  but  a  right  to  pass 
and  repass  thereon;  they  cannot,  therefore,  justify  turning  their 
cattle  thereon  for  the  purpose  of  grazing. 

And  if  cattle,  so  on  the  highway,  for  the  purpose  of  grazing, 
escape  into  the  adjoining  close,  the  owner  of  the  cattle  cannot 
avail  himself  of  the  insufficiency  of  the  fences  in  excuse  of  the 
trespass. 

Statute  Liability  for  Building  of  Line  Fence.    Duty  of  Fence 

Viewers. 

O'MALLEY  v.  MEYER. 

221  Mass.  198. 

Upon  a  complaint  of  a  landowner  made  to  fence  viewers  under 
R.  L.,  c.  33,  where  the  erection  of  a  division  fence  is  desired,  the 
fence  viewers,  if  their  award  is  to  have  any  validity  as  the  basis 
of  a  cause  of  action,  must  decide  not  only  that  a  fence  is  neces- 
sary, but  also  what  part  of  the  fence  each  landowner  is  to  con- 
struct. In  the  absence  of  a  decision  as  to  such  apportionment  a 
landowner  who,  after  the  fence  viewers  determined  that  a  division 
fence  was  necessary,  built  the  whole  of  it  himself  cannot  maintain 
an  action  of  contract  against  the  owner  of  the  adjoining  land  to 
recover  double  the  value  of  one-half  of  the  fence  he  has  built, 
his  rights  being  governed  and  limited  by  the  statute. 

Duty  of  Landowner  to  maintain  Fence. 

LITTLE  v.  LOTHROP. 
5  Greenleaf,  356  (Maine}. 

Where  there  is  no  prescription,  agreement  or  assignment  under 
the  statute,  whereby  the  owner  of  land  is  bound  to  maintain  a 
fence,  no  occupant  is  obliged  to  fence  against  an  adjoining  close; 
but  in  such  case,  there  being  no  fence,  each  owner  is  bound  at  his 
peril  to  keep  his  cattle  on  his  own  close. 

Where  a  tenant  is  bound  by  prescription,  agreement  or  assign- 
ment under  the  statute  to  maintain  a  fence  against  an  adjoining 
close,  it  is  only  against  such  cattle  as  are  rightfully  on  that  close; 


150 

and  in  such  case,  if  the  fence  be  not  in  fact  made,  the  owner  of 
either  close,  thus  adjoining,  may  distrain  the  cattle  escaping  from 

the  adjoining  close  and  not  rightfully  there. 

,,  .  » 

Liability  of  Landowner  to  pay  for  Share  of  Partition  Fence. 

FIELD  v.  THE  PROPRIETORS  OF  COMMON  AND  UNDIVIDED  LAND 

IN  NANTUCKET. 

1  Gushing,  11. 
[PART  OF  REPORTER'S  HEADNOTE.] 

The  liability  of  the  owner  or  occupant  of  land  which  has  lain 
unenclosed,  on  enclosing  or  depasturing  the  same,  to  pay  for  the 
one-half  of  a  partition  fence,  under  the  Rev.  Sts.,  c.  19,  §  12 
(R.  L.,  c.  33,  §  12),  attaches  immediately  upon  such  enclosing  or 
depasturing. 

The  right  of  an  owner,  who  has  erected  a  partition  fence,  to 
recover  the  value  of  one-half  thereof  against  the  owner  of  ad- 
joining land  is  complete  by  the  commencement  of  proceedings  to 
have  the  value  of  such  half  ascertained  by  fence  viewers,  and 
cannot  be  defeated  by  a  sale  of  the  land,  and  a  notice  by  the 
purchaser,  that  he  does  not  intend  to  occupy  or  improve  or 
enclose  it,  subsequent  to  the  application  to  the  fence  viewers, 
and  notice  of  such  application  by  them  to  the  original  owner, 
though  previous  to  any  further  proceedings  by  them. 

Prescriptive  Obligation  to  maintain  Fence. 

BINNEY  v.  THE  PROPRIETORS  OF  THE  COMMON  AND  UNDIVIDED 
LANDS  IN  HULL. 

5  Pick.  503. 

Evidence  that  the  plaintiff  and  his  ancestors  had  for  fifty-six 
years  maintained  a  partition  fence  between  his  land  and  that  of 
the  defendants;  that  fifty-six  years  ago  the  fence  was  an  old  one, 
and  that  at  that  time  the  plaintiffs  ancestor,  being  owner  of  the 
land,  said  it  had  always  been  maintained  by  himself  and  his 
ancestors,  was  held  sufficient  to  support  a  plea  of  a  prescriptive 
obligation  on  the  plaintiff  to  maintain  it. 

A  prescriptive  obligation  on  the  owner  of  land  to  maintain  a 
partition  fence  is  not  destroyed  by  his  becoming  a  tenant  in 
common  of  the  adjoining  land. 


151 


Liability  of  Owner  in  Trespass  for  Escaping  Cattle. 
THAYER  v.  ARNOLD. 

4  Met.  589. 

Where  a  party  is  not  bound  by  prescription,  agreement  or 
assignment  of  fence  viewers  to  maintain  a  fence  between  his  land 
and  that  of  an  adjoining  owner  he  may  sustain  an  action  of 
trespass  quare  clausum  fregit  against  the  adjoining  owner  whose 
cattle  escape  into  his  land.  The  common  law  on  this  point  is  not 
altered  by  the  statutes  of  this  Commonwealth. 

Liability  of  Owner  of  Cattle  straying  from  Highway  on  Unfenced 

Land. 

HARTFORD  v.  BRADY. 

114  Mass.  466. 

When  cattle  properly  driven  upon  the  highway  escape  upon 
unfenced  adjoining  land  their  owner  is  not  liable  therefor  if  he 
makes  reasonable  effort  to  remove  them  and  to  prevent  damage. 

Right  of  Landowner  to  place  Fence  on  Adjoining  Land. 
NEWELL  v.  HILL. 

2  Met.  180. 

An  occupant  of  land,  who  is  bound  to  maintain  a  fence  be- 
tween his  own  and  an  adjoining  enclosure,  may  place  half  of  a 
fence,  of  reasonable  dimensions,  on  the  land  of  the  adjoining 
owner.  And  he  may  cut  half  of  a  ditch  on  the  land  of  such 
owner  when  a  ditch  is  proper  for  a  partition  fence. 

Suitable  Fence  for  Railroad.    Liability  of  Company  for  Sheep 
straying  on  Track. 

EAMES  v.  SALEM  &  LOWELL  R.R.  Co. 
98  Mass.  560. 

The  "suitable"  fences  which  a  railroad  corporation  is  required 
by  the  Gen.  Sts.,  c.  63,  §  43  (St.  1846,  c.  271),  to  erect  and 
maintain  on  both  sides  of  the  railroad  need  not  of  necessity  be 
such  fences  as  are  required  to  be  maintained  by  owners  of  ad- 
joining improved  lands,  and  described  in  the  Gen.  £>ts.,  c.  25,  §  1 
(R.  L.,  c.  33,  §  1),  as  "legal  and  sufficient." 

If  the  owner  of  sheep  suffers  them  to  be  unlawfully  on  land 
from  which  they  stray  through  an  unsuitable  fence  to  the  track 


152 

of  an  adjoining  railroad  where  they  are  killed  by  a  passenger 
train,  the  railroad  corporation  is  not  liable  in  damages,  although 
the  fence  was  one  which  it  was  bouild  to  make  and  maintain 
suitably. 

If  the  owner  of  sheep  negligently  suffers  them  to  stray  on  a 
railroad  where  they  are  killed  by  a  passing  train,  the  railroad 
corporation  is  not  liable  in  damages. 

Recovery  for  Partition  Fence.    Meaning  of  Water  Fenee. 

LAMB  v.  HICKS. 

11  Met.  496. 

In  an  action  on  the  Rev.  Sts.,  c.  19,  §  6  (R.  L.,  c.  33,  §  6),  to 
recover  double  the  value  of  a  partition  fence  erected  by  the 
plaintiff,  after  the  defendant's  refusal  to  erect  it,  it  is  necessary 
to  prove  that  the  fence  viewers  gave  the  defendant  notice  of 
their  meeting  before  they  adjudged  the  fence  sufficient  and  ap- 
praised the  value  thereof.  But  as  such  adjudication  and  ap- 
praisement are  one  transaction,  and  are  to  be  made  at  the  same 
time,  it  is  not  necessary  that  the  fence  viewers  should  give  the 
defendant  a  separate  and  distinct  notice  of  the  two  purposes  of 
their  meeting. 

When  a  plaintiff,  who  has  erected  a  fence  which  the  defendant 
has  refused  to  erect,  demands  of  the  defendant  double  the  sum 
ascertained  and  certified  by  the  fence  viewers  as  the  value  of 
such  fence,  and  also  demands  the  fence  viewers'  fees,  which  are 
not  legally  taxed,  the  demand  for  each  item  is  in  its  nature 
several,  and  the  demand  for  the  fees  does  not  render  void  the 
demand  for  the  other  sum. 

A  partition  fence  on  land  that  is  covered,  a  part  of  the  year, 
with  the  waters  of  an  artificial  mill  pond,  but  is  occupied  and 
used  as  pasture  or  mowing  land  during  another  part  of  the  year, 
is  not  a  water  fence  within  the  meaning  of  the  Rev.  Sts.,  c.  19, 
§§  9,  14. 

Authority  of  Fence  Viewers  to  assign  Portions  of  Fence. 

SEAKS  v.  INHABITANTS  OF  CHARLEMONT. 

6  Allen,  437. 

Under  a  complaint  that  a  fence  is  out  of  repair,  fence  viewers 
have  no  authority  to  assign  to  each  of  the  owners  of  adjoining 
land  his  respective  share  of  the  fence,  and  to  direct  the  building 
thereof  within  a  specified  time. 


153 

No  action  lies  to  recover  upon  an  award  of  fence  viewers,  under 
Gen.  Sts.,  c.  25,  §§  3,  4,  unless  they  have  previously  adjudicated 
that  the  existing  fence  was  insufficient  and  illegal,  and  that  the 
fence  which  the  plaintiff  has  rebuilt  is  sufficient. 

Enforcement  of  Award  of  Fence  Viewers. 
KENNEDY  v.  OWEN. 

134  Mass.  226. 

The  remedy  provided  by  the  Gen.  Sts.,  c.  25,  §  4,  for  enforcing 
payment  of  an  award  of  fence  viewers  is  applicable  only  to  a  case 
where  the  duty  of  maintaining  the  fence  is  required  by  the  stat- 
ute, and  does  not  apply  to  a  case  where  such  duty  arises  from  the 
acceptance  of  a  deed  containing  a  condition  to  maintain  it. 

Fence  Line  to  be  adjudicated  by  Fence  Viewers. 
KENNEDY  v.  OWEN. 

131  Mass.  431. 
[PART  OF  REPORTER'S  HEADNOTE.] 

An  action  on  the  Gen.  Sts.,  c.  25,  §  4  (R.  L.,  c.  33,  §  4),  to 
recover  double  the  value  of  a  partition  fence,  rebuilt  by  the 
plaintiff,  and  double  the  amount  of  the  fees  of  the  fence  viewers 
for  their  services  in  relation  thereto,  cannot  be  maintained  unless 
the  fence  is  built  upon  the  line  which  divides  the  premises  of  the 
parties,  if  this  is  known  and  undisputed;  and  in  the  absence  of 
any  adjudication  by  the  fence  viewers,  under  the  St.  of  1863, 
c.  190,  designating  the  line  on  which  the  fence  should  be  built, 
the  line  adopted  by  the  plaintiff  is  not  conclusively  binding  upon 
the  defendant. 

* 

Validity  of  Partial  Assignment  of  Fence  Line  by  Fence  Viewers. 

ALGER  v.  POOL. 
11  Cush.  450. 

An  assignment  by  fence  viewers  under  Rev.  Sts.,  c.  19,  §  5 
(R.  L.,  c.  33,  §  5),  of  only  a  part  of  a  continuous  line  of  partition 
fence  is  not  for  that  reason  invalid,  neither  party  at  the  time 
requesting  that  the  whole  line  be  divided. 

After  such  assignment  duly  made,  the  obligations  of  the  parties 
are  fixed  to  maintain  the  fence  accordingly,  and  cannot  be 
changed,  without  consent,  by  a  subsequent  view  and  division  by 
the  fence  owners  of  the  whole  continuous  line  of  partition  fence. 


154 


Requirement  of  Notice  by  Fence  Viewers.    Liability  of  Owners  of 

Common  Field. 

SCOTT  v.  DICKINSON. 
14  Pick.  276. 

When  in  pursuance  of  the  provisions  of  St.  1785,  c.  52  (R.  L., 
c.  33),  regulating  the  erection  of  fences,  the  plaintiff  had,  in 
consequence  of  the  neglect  of  the  defendant,  erected  the  portion 
of  the  fence  between  their  lands  which  was  assigned  to  the 
defendant  by  the  fence  viewers,  and  the  fence  viewers  afterwards, 
upon  the  application  of  the  plaintiff,  but  without  notice  to  the 
defendant,  appraised  the  value  of  this  portion  and  ascertained  the 
amount  of  their  fees,  it  was  held,  in  an  action  brought  by  the 
plaintiff  under  the  statute  to  recover  double  the  value  of  such 
valuation,  that  such  appraisement  was  void  as  against  the  de- 
fendant, although  the  statute  does  not,  expressly,  require  notice 
thereof  to  be  given  to  the  defendant. 

It  seems  that  land  which  has  lain  in  a  common  field  de  facto 
for  a  series  of  years  cannot  be  excluded  therefrom  merely  by  an 
allotment  made  in  pursuance  of  a  vote  .of  the  proprietors  of  the 
general  field. 

It  seems,  also,  that  under  St.  1785,  c.  52  (R.  L.,  c.  33),  the 
proprietors  of  a  common  field,  in  their  corporate  capacity,  or  as 
tenants  in  common  and  not  the  individual  proprietors  holding 
portions  of  the  common  field  in  severalty,  are  liable,  so  far  as 
regards  the  owner  of  lands  adjoining  the  common  field,  to  the 
duty  of  maintaining  the  partition  fence  between  such  portions  of 
the  common  field  and  such  adjoining  land. 

Private    Nuisance.    " Adjoining    Property."      Statute.      Action. 

SPAULDING  v.  SMITH. 

162  Mass.  543. 

The  owner  of  land  on  one  side  extending  to  the  center  of  a 
highway  cannot,  under  St.  1887,  c.  348,  maintain  an  action 
against  an  owner  of  land  on  the  opposite  side  and  extending  to 
the  center  of  the  same  highway  for  maliciously  maintaining,  on 
the  line  of  the  highway,  opposite  the  plaintiff's  land,  a  fence 
unnecessarily  exceeding  6  feet  in  height  for  the  purpose  of  annoy- 
ing the  plaintiff. 


155 


5.    FIELD  DRIVERS  AND  POUND  KEEPERS. 

Right  of  Field  Driver  to  take  Oxen  going  at  Large. 

DEAN  v.  LINDSEY. 

16  Gray,  265. 

A  field  driver  who  takes  oxen  going  at  large  in  a  public  high- 
way without  a  keeper,  with  the  intention  of  driving  them  to  the 
town  pound,  and,  before  driving  them  to  the  pound,  drives  them 
into  his  own  yard,  goes  a  third  of  a  mile  to  find  the  owner,  and 
having  found  him  says  to  him,  "I  have  taken  two  of  your  oxen 
and  put  them  in  my  yard,  and  if  you  don't  come  after  them  I 
shall  drive  them  to  the  pound,"  is  not  liable  to  the  owner  for  a 
conversion  of  the  cattle. 

Right  of  Field  Driver.    Liability  of  Owner  depasturing  Adjacent 

Highway. 

PAKKER  v.  JONES. 

1  Allen,  270. 

The  act  of  a  field  driver  is  not  necessarily  unlawful,  although 
in  taking  an  animal  to  the  pound  he  drives  it  first  upon  the 
owner's  premises. 

The  owner  of  land  adjoining  a  highway,  and  who  owns  to  the 
center  thereof,  may  depasture  his  land  in  the  highway,  but  he  is 
bound,  like  all  other  persons,  to  prevent  his  cattle  from  going  at 
large  therein  without  being  under  the  care  of  a  keeper. 

Authority  of  Field  Driver.    Requirements  of  Notice. 
PHILLIPS  v.  BRISTOL. 

131  Mass.  426. 

A  field  driver  cannot  at  the  same  time  distrain  and  impound 
cattle  for  both  causes  prescribed  by  the  Gen.  Sts.,  c.  25  (R.  L., 
c.  33),  —  for  going  at  large  in  the  highway  without  a  keeper,  and 
for  doing  damage  on  private  lands. 

If  one  cause  of  the  impounding  of  cattle  by  a  field  driver  is  the 
damage  done  by  them  to  the  land  of  A,  a  notice  by  the  field 
driver  to  the  owner  of  the  cattle,  describing  them  and  stating 
that  they  were  impounded  "for  being  at  large  out  of  enclosure 
in  the  highway,  said  cattle  delivered  to  me  in  said  highway  by 
the  agent  of  A,"  and  that  the  damage  to  A,  together  with  the 


156 

fees  of  the  field  driver  and  pound  keeper,  amounted  to  a  certain 
sum,  is  not  a  sufficient  notice  under  the  Gen.  Sts.,  c.  25,  §  29 
(R.  L.,  c.  33,  §  31). 

WILD  v.  SKINNER. 
23  Pick.  251. 

Under  Rev.  Sts.,  c.  19,  §  22  (R.  L.,  c.  33,  §  22),  requiring  field 
drivers  to  take  up  and  impound  at  any  time  cattle  going  at  large 
in  the  highway  without  a  keeper,  a  field  driver  is  authorized  to 
impound  cattle  so  going  at  large  on  Sunday,  the  action  of  debt 
to  which  the  owner  is  subjected  by  the  statute  in  such  case  being 
merely  a  cumulative  remedy. 

The  field  driver  in  such  case  is  not  bound,  under  Rev.  Sts.,  c. 
113,  §  6  (R.  L.,  c.  33,  §  29),  to  leave  with  the  pound  keeper  a 
memorandum  stating  the  cause  of  impounding  and  the  damages 
demanded,  this  being  requisite  only  where  cattle  are  impounded 
damage  feasant. 

If  the  owner  of  the  cattle  replevy  them  within  twenty-four 
hours  after  they  have  been  impounded  he  cannot  afterwards 
object  that  no  notice  of  such  impounding  was  given  him  in  con- 
formity with  the  provision  of  Rev.  Sts.,  c.  113,  §  8  (R.  L.,  c.  33, 
§31). 

COFFIN  v.  VINCENT. 

12  Gush.  98. 
[PART  OP  REPORTER'S  HEADNOTE.] 

To  prove  the  contents  of  a  notice  posted  up  by  a  field  driver 
who  had  distrained  sheep  for  running  at  large,  a  witness  who 
read  it  may  testify  to  its  contents,  the  notice  being  lost,  and  may 
refresh  his  recollection  by  referring  to  a  proper  form  of  such  a 
notice,  which,  although  not  made  by  himself,  he  had  compared 
with  the  notice  posted  up  and  found  to  correspond. 

In  an  action  against  a  field  driver  who  had  impounded  sheep 
for  running  at  large  contrary  to  law,  an  instruction  to  the  jury 
that  if  they  were  satisfied  that  the  notice  of -the  impounding  was 
posted  up  within  twenty-four  hours  in  some  public  place  by  the 
defendant,  containing  a  description  of  the  sheep  and  a  statement 
of  the  time,  place  and  cause  of  impounding,  they  might  find  a 
verdict  for  the  defendant,  sufficiently  imports  that  the  burden  of 
proof  is  upon  the  defendant  to  show  that  the  notice  posted  up 
contained  a  statement  of  some  particular  specific  cause  known  to 
the  law  for  which  the  beasts  were  taken  up,  especially  if  more 


157 

specific    instructions    on    this    point    are    not    requested    by    the 
plaintiff  at  the  trial. 

A  field  driver  who  lawfully  impounds  sheep  running  at  large 
contrary  to  law,  and  duly  posts  a  notice  thereof,  is  not  liable  to 
the  owner  of  the  beasts  as  a  trespasser  ab  initio,  although  he  fails 
either  to  restore  the  sheep  or  sell  them  according  to  law,  through 
the  default  of  the  pound  keeper  or  other  person,  or  from  the 
insufficiency  of  the  pound,  the  animals  being  lawfully  in  the 
pound  keeper's  custody. 

BRUCE  v.  HOLDEN. 

21  Pick.  187. 

[PART  or  REPORTER'S  HEADNOTE.] 

When  a  field  driver  impounds  beasts  for  being  at  large  in  the 
highway  it  is  his  duty  to  leave  with  the  pound  keeper  a  memo- 
randum or  certificate  of  the  cause  of  impounding  and  of  his  fees 
or  expenses,  and  such  certificate  is  an  official  act,  and  in  an 
action  of  trespass  against  him  for  taking  the  beasts  is  prima  facie 
evidence  in  his  favor  of  the  facts  stated  in  it. 

CLEVERLY  v.  TOWLE. 

3  Allen,  39. 

A  written  notice,  posted  up  and  published  in  a  newspaper  by  a 
field  driver  who  has  impounded  beasts  going  at  large  in  a  public 
highway,  which  states  that  the  beasts  were  "going  at  large,  and 
without  a  helper,"  sets  forth  a  sufficient  cause  of  impounding 
under  Rev.  Sts.,  c.  113,  §  9  (R.  L.,  c.  33,  §  32). 

SANDERSON  v.  LAWRENCE. 

2  Gray,  178. 

A  notice  in  writing,  given  by  a  field  driver  to  the  owner  of 
beasts  impounded  for  going  at  large  in  the  highway,  which  states 
that  the  beasts  "were  running  at  large,  and  were  trespassing 
upon  the  premises  of  other  individuals,"  does  not  state  a  suffi- 
cient cause  of  impounding,  as  required  by  Rev.  Sts.,  c?  113,  §  8 
(R.  L.,  c.  33,  §  31). 


158 


Requirements  of  Notice  from  Field  Driver  to  Owner  of  Beasts 
impounded.    Meaning  of  Highway. 

PICKARD  v.  HOWE. 

12  Met.  198. 

The  notice  which  a  person  who  impounds  beasts  is  required  by 
Rev.  Sts.,  c.  113,  §  8,  to  give  to  the  owner  of  them  within 
twenty-four  hours  need  not  state  the  hour  of  the  day  when  they 
were  impounded.  And  proof  that  notice  was  left  in  the  hands  of 
one  of  the  owner's  family,  at  his  dwelling  house,  is  sufficient  to 
authorize  a  jury  to  find  that  it  was  left  at  his  place  of  abode. 

A  field  driver  who  impounds  beasts  for  going  at  large  on  a 
public  highway  is  not  bound  by  Rev.  Sts.,  c.  113,  §  6  (R.  L., 
c.  33,  §  29),  to  leave  with  the  pound  keeper  a  memorandum 
stating  the  cause  of  the  impounding  and  the  sum  that  he  de- 
mands from  the  owner. 

It  is  no  objection  to  the  notice  required  by  Rev.  Sts.,  c.  113, 
§  8  (R.  L.,  c.  33,  §  31),  to  be  given  by  a  field  driver  to  the  owner 
of  impounded  cattle,  that  the  field  driver's  name  is  signed  by 
another  person,  if  it  be  done  at  the  field  driver's  request. 

In  an  action  of  replevin  brought  against  a  field  driver  by  the 
owner  of  the  cattle  impounded  by  him  for  going  at  large,  the 
defendant  may  show  in  evidence  not  only  that  he  gave  the 
plaintiff  the  notice  required  by  Rev.  Sts.,  c.  113,  §  8  (R.  L.,  c. 
33,  §  29),  but  also  that  he  posted  notices  according  to  the  provi- 
sions of  section  9.  But  the  plaintiff  cannot  give  evidence  that  the 
cattle  were  not  suitably  provided  for  or  were  ill  treated  in  the 
pound. 

A  notice  given  by  a  field  driver  to  the  owner  of  cattle,  that 
they  are  impounded  for  going  at  large  on  the  public  highway,  is 
prima  facie  evidence  that  they  were  so  at  large,  and  puts  on  the 
owner  the  burden  of  proving  the  contrary. 

A  turnpike  is  a  public  highway  within  the  meaning  of  Rev. 
Sts.,  c.  19,  §  22,  which  require  field  drivers  to  take  up  and  im- 
pound cattle  going  at  large  in  the  public  highways. 

Requirements  of  Notice  by  Field  Driver  to  Pound  Keeper. 
SHERMAN  v.  BRAMAN. 

13  Met.  407. 

B  took  up  beasts  doing  damage  on  his  land,  and  impounded 
them  in  his  own  enclosure  for  several  hours,  and  then  drove  them 
toward  the  town  pound,  and  delivered  them,  in  the  highway  near 


159 

the  pound,  to  the  pound  keeper  (who  was  also*  a  field  driver)  as 
cattle  taken  doing  damage,  but  did  not  leave  with  the  pound 
keeper  a  written  memorandum,  as  required  by  the  Rev.  Sts.,  c. 
113,  §  6  (R.  L.,  c.  33,  §  29),  stating  the  cause  of  impounding  and 
the  sum  that  he  demanded  for  the  damage  done.  The  pound 
keeper  put  the  beasts  into  the  pound  and  gave  the  owner  the 
notice  required  to  be  given  by  field  drivers  when  they  impound 
beasts  taken  up  for  going  at  large  contrary  to  law.  Held,  that  B 
became  a  trespasser  ab  initio  by  failing  to  leave  with  tbe  pound 
keeper  the  written  memorandum  required  by  law,  and  was  an- 
swerable to  the  owner  of  the  beasts  in  an  action  of  trespass  for 
taking,  driving  away  and  detaining  them. 

Requirements  of  Written  Notice  by  Distrainer. 
NEWHOUSE  v.  HATCH. 

126  Mass.  364. 

A  person  distraining  cattle  doing  damage  on  his  land  im- 
pounded them  in  the  town  pound  and  handed  the  keeper  the 
following  written  memorandum,  with  his  name  and  a  date  upon 
the  paper:  "Two  dollars  for  damages  and  three  dollars  and  fifty 
cents  for  fees."  Held,  that  the  memorandum  was  defective  in 
not  stating  the  cause  of  impounding,  as  required  by  Gen.  Sts., 
c.  25,  §  27  (R.  L.,  c.  33,  §  29),  and  that  such  person  was  a  tres- 
passer ab  initio. 

Waiver  of  Notice  of  Impounding.    Action  of  Replevin,  when  com- 
menced. 

FIELD  v.  JACOBS. 
12  Met.  118. 

When  the  owner  of  cattle  that  are  impounded  by  a  field  driver 
for  going  at  large  contrary  to  law  commences  an  action  of  re- 
plevin against  the  field  driver  within  twenty-four  hours  after  they 
are  impounded,  he  waives  the  notice  which  the  Rev.  Sts.,  c.  113; 
§  8  (R.  L.,  c.  33,  §  31),  require  the  field  driver  to  give  him,  and 
cannot  rely,  in  support  of  his  action,  on  the  want  of  such  notice. 

If  a  writ  to  replevy  impounded  cattle  is  filled  up  within 
twenty-four  hours  after  they  are  impounded,  with  the  intent  of 
the  plaintiff,  at  all  events,  to  have  it  served,  whether  the  defe'nd- 
ant  shall  give  him  notice  of  the  impounding  within  twenty-four 
hours  or  not,  the  action  of  replevin  is  commenced  when  the  writ 


160 

is  filled  up,  although  it  is  not  served,  nor  given  to  an  officer  for 
service,  and  no  replevin  bond  is  executed,  until  after  the  expira- 
tion of  twenty-four  hours  from  the  time  of  the  impounding. 

Liability  of  Person  distraining  Cattle. 

MERRICK  v,  WORK. 

10  Allen,  544- 

If  beasts  doing  damage  are  distrained,  and  driven  to  the  dis- 
trainer's  yard  till  the  pound  keeper  can  be  called,  and  then 
delivered  to  the  latter  in  the  highway,  it  is  the  duty  of  the  dis- 
trainer  to  state  his  demand,  and  to  give  notices  as  required  in 
Gen.  Sts.,  c.  25,  §§  27,  29,  30  (R.  L.,  c.  33,  §§  29,  31,  32),  and  if 
he  omits  to  do  so  he  will  be  liable  as  a  trespasser  ab  initio. 

Liability  of  Pound  Keeper  to  Owner  of  Beasts  impounded. 

FOLGER    V.    HlNCKLEY. 

5  Cushing,  263. 

A  pound  keeper  who  receives  and  impounds  beasts  for  going  at 
large,  and  refuses  to  deliver  them  to  the  owner  on  demand,  unless 
his  fees  and  those  of  the  field  driver  are  paid,  is  not  liable  there- 
for in  an  action  of  replevin. 

Action  of  Replevin  for  Beasts  distrained.    Notice.    Rights  of 
Owner  of  Beasts  impounded. 

COFFIN  v.  FIELD. 
7  Cushing,  355. 

The  action  of  replevin  given  by  the  Rev.  Sts.,  c.  113,  §  17,  to 
one  whose  beasts  are  unlawfully  distrained  or  impounded  does 
not  exclude  all  other  remedies  at  common  law;  trespass  will  still 
lie.  ' 

Actual  knowledge  by  the  owner  of  beasts  impounded  of  the 
impounding  thereof  is  not  equivalent  to  the  written  notice 
required  by  the  Rev.  Sts.,  c.  113,  §  8  (R.  L.,  c.  33,  §  31). 

The  owner  of  beasts  impounded  does  not  waive  the  right  to 
maintain  trespass  against  the  field  driver  by  whom  the  beasts 
were  taken  and  impounded,  on  the  ground  of  irregularities  or 
omissions  in  their  proceedings,  by  paying  the  fees  of  the  field 
driver  and  pound  keeper;  nor  by  declaring  to  a  third  person, 
after  the  commencement  of  the  action,  that  he  should  require  the 
defendants  to  prove  that  the  place  where  they  took  the  beasts 
was  a  public  highway. 


161 


Impounding  Cattle. 

CONNERS   V.   LOKER. 

134  Mass.  510. 

The  mere  driving  cows  off  a  person's  land  into  the  highway, 
and  detaining  them  there  until  the  owner  comes  and  takes  them 
away,  and  then  demanding  a  sum  of  money  as  damages,  is  not, 
as  matter  of  law,  an  impounding  of  the  cows. 

Cattle,  when  under  Control  of  Keeper.    Meaning  of  Keeper. 

BRUCE  v.  WHITE. 

4  Gray,  345. 

Cattle  in  a  highway,  not  actually  under  the  efficient  control  of 
a  keeper,  are  "going  at  large  in  the  highways,  and  not  under  the 
care  of  a  keeper,"  within  the  meaning  of  the  Rev.  Sts.,  c.  19, 
§  22  (R.  L.,  c.  33,  §  22),  and  may  be  taken  up  and  impounded  by 
a  field  driver,  although  they  have  been  entrusted  by  their  owner 
to  a  servant,  with  other  cattle,  and  have  only  left  the  drove  a 
mile  before  reaching  the  pasture,  and^urned  into  a  different  road, 
also  leading  to  the  pasture,  over  which  they  have  sometimes  been 
driven,  and  there  remain  feeding,  and  the  servant  returns  in  less 
than  an  hour  to  the  place  where  he  lost  them. 

A  person  who  finds  cattle  at  large  in  the  highway  not  under 
the  care  of  a  keeper,  and  drives  them  along  the  highway  until  he 
finds  a  field  driver,  is  not  a  keeper  within  the  meaning  of  Rev. 
Sts.,  c.  19,  §  22  (R.  L.,  c.  33,  §  22),  and  the  field  driver  may 
lawfully  receive  and  impound  them. 

Pound  Breach. 

COMMONWEALTH  v.  BEALE. 

5  Pick.  514^ 

Upon  an  indictment  for  pound  breach  the  illegality  of  the 
distress  cannot  be  shown  in  the  defence. 

The  penalties  of  St.  1788,  c.  65,  §  6  (R.  L.,  c.  33,  §  38),  for 
pound  breach,  or  otherwise  delivering  creatures  from  a  pound, 
are  extended  to  cases  of  creatures  impounded  for  going  at  large 
contrary  to  St.  1799,  c.  61. 


162 


Town  Pound,  when  established. 

ANTHONY  v.  ANTHONY. 

6  Allen,  408. 

A  pound  keeper  may  lawfully  impound  beasts  which  have  been 
distrained  damage  feasant  in  a  yard  furnished  and  used  by  the 
town  as  a  town  pound,  if  the  town  has  furnished  and  used  no 
other  place  as  a  pound,  although  the  inhabitants  of  the  town 
have  passed  no  vote  concerning  the  same,  and  taken  no  action 
at  any  town  meeting  for  the  purpose  of  establishing  it  as  a 
pound. 

Validity  of  Sale  at  Auction  of  Impounded  Beasts. 

SMITH  v.  GATES. 
21  Pick.  55. 

Under  the  Rev.  Sts.,  c.  113,  §§  11,  12  (R.  L.,  c.  33,  §§  34,  35), 
providing  that  where  appraisers  are  appointed  to  determine  the 
amount  due  from  the  owner  of  an  impounded  beast  for  damages, 
etc.,  and  the  sum  found  by  them  to  be  due  is  not  forthwith  paid, 
the  person  impounding  may  cause  the  beast  to  be  sold  by  auction, 
first  advertising  the  sale  by  posting  up  a  notice  thereof  twenty- 
four  hours  beforehand,  it  was  held  that  where  a  beast  impounded 
by  a  field  driver  was  sold  twenty  minutes  before  the  expiration  of 
twenty-four  hours  from  the  time  when  the  appraisement  was 
completed  the  sale  was  invalid,  and  the  field  driver  a  trespasser 
ab  initio,  although  more  than  twenty-four  hours  had  elapsed 
from  the  time  of  posting  up  the  advertisement;  and  that  it  was 
immaterial,  in  such  case,  whether  any  actual  injury  had  been 
sustained  by  the  owner  of  the  beast  in  consequence  of  this 
neglect  of  duty  on  the  part  of  the  field  driver  or  not. 

The  statute  intends  that  the  owner  of  the  beast  impounded 
shall  have  an  opportunity  to  pay  the  appraised  damages  and 
charges  before  the  posting  up  of  an  advertisement  for  the  sale  of 
the  beast. 

6.    OWNERSHIP  OF  MANURE. 

Ownership  of  Manure  by  Tenant. 

NASON  v.  TOBEY. 

182  Mass.  314. 

Although  manure  made  in  the  ordinary  course  of  husbandry 
belongs  to  the  landlord  of  a  leased  farm,  and  perhaps  under  some 
circumstances  may  belong  to  him  even  if  made  from  hay  fur- 


sale  01 


.       163 

nished  by  the  tenant,  yet,  when  animals  are  collected  on  a  farm 
to  a  greater  number  than  it  is  capable  of  supporting,  and  are  fed 
there  upon  purchased  food  for  the  purpose  of  carrying  on  the 
milk  business,  the  tenant  has  a  right  to  some  ascertainable 
proportion  of  the  manure. 

FLETCHER  v.  HERRING. 

112  Mass.  382. 

Manure  so  made  or  held  as  to  be  the  personal  property  of  an 
outgoing  tenant  does  not  necessarily  become  real  estate  by  being 
left  upon  the  premises  after  the  expiration  of  the  tenancy. 

Title  to  Manure  on  Leased  Farm. 
DANIELS  v.  POND. 
21  Pickering,  367. 

"The  court  are  of  opinion  that  manure  made  on  a  farm,  occu- 
pied by  a  tenant  at  will  or  for  years  in  the  ordinary  course  of 
husbandry,  consisting  of  the  collections  from  the  stable  and 
barn  yard,  or  of  composts  formed  by  an  admixture  of  these  with 
soil  or  other  substances,  is,>by  usage,  practice  and  general  under- 
standing, so  attached  to,  and  connected  with,  the  realty  that  in 
the  absence  of  any  express  stipulation  on  the  subject  an  outgoing 
tenant  has  no  right  to  recover  the  manure  thus  collected  or  sell 
it  to  be  removed,  and  that  such  removal  is  a  tort  for  which  the 
landlord  may  have  redress;  and  such  sale  will  vest  no  property 
on  the  vendee. 

"The  rule  here  adopted  will  not  be  considered  as  applying  to 
manure  made  in  a  livery  stable,  or  in  any  manner  not  connected 
with  agriculture  or  in  a  course  of  husbandry." l 

7.    FARM  LABOR. 

Workmen's  Compensation  Act,  Farmer.      Words  "Driver," 
"Helper,"  "Farm  Laborers." 

PATRICK  KEANEY'S  CASE. 

217  Mass.  5. 

A  farmer  carrying  on  a  market  garden  may  procure  insurance 
under  the  workmen's  compensation  act  covering  his  "drivers  and 
helpers"  employed  in  the  distribution  of  the  produce  of  the  farm 

i  See  also  Lassell  v.  Reed,  6  Greenleaf  (Me.),  222;  Needham  v.  Allison,  24  New  Hampshire,  355; 
Sawyer  u.Twiss,  26  New  Hampshire,  345;  Fay  v.  Muzzey,  13  Gray,  53;  Strong  D.Doyle,  110  Mass. 
92;  Collier  v.  Jenks,  19  R.  I.  137. 


164 

without  insuring  his  other  employees  who  are  merely  "farm 
laborers,"  and  this  is  so  whether  or  not  such  "drivers  and 
helpers"  are  "farm  laborers,"  which  here  was  not  decided. 

An  employee  on  a  farm  carried  on  as  a  market  garden,  who 
does  the  ordinary  work  of  one  hired  by  a  farmer  to  aid  in  the 
common  incidents  of  agricultural  employment,  is  neither  a 
"driver"  nor  a  "helper"  within  the  meaning  of  a  policy  of  em- 
ployers' liability  insurance  covering  "drivers  and  helpers"  em- 
ployed in  the  distribution  of  the  produce  of  the  farm,  although 
occasionally  he  has  driven  a  team  as  part  of  his  farm  work  and  in 
a  general  sense  has  helped  about  the  farm. 

The  provision  of  the  workmen's  compensation  act,  contained 
in  Acts  of  1911,  c.  751,  Part  I,  §  2,  that  the  provisions  of  section 
1,  taking  away  certain  defences  in  an  action  for  personal  injuries 
by  an  employer,  shall  not  apply  to  actions  by  farm  laborers, 
includes  the  farm  laborers  of  all  farmers  so  far  as  concerns 
farming  operations,  whether  the  farmers  carry  on  other  business 
or  not. 

Negligence,  Employers'  Liability.    Words  "Farm  Laborer,"  "Em- 
ployer Himself." 

ROWLEY  v.  ELLIS. 

197  Mass.  391. 

Under  §  79  of  R.  L.,  c.  106  (Acts  of  1911,  c.  751),  which  pro- 
vides that  "  the  provisions  of  the  eight  preceding  sections  shall 
not  apply  to  injuries  caused  to  domestic  servants  or  farm  laborers 
by  fellow  employees,"  a  foreman  in  charge  of  one  of  four  farms 
belonging  to  the  same  owner,  under  the  direction  of  a  superin- 
tendent who  visits  each  farm  once  a  day,  such  foreman  receiving 
a  salary  of  $35  a  month,  and  having  sixteen  or  eighteen  men 
under  him,  is  a  farm  laborer  within  the  meaning  of  the  statute, 
and,  if  he  is  killed  without  conscious  suffering  by  the  violent 
breaking  of  the  sprocket  chain  of  a  cutting  machine  when  he  is 
showing  the  workmen  how  to  feed  corn  stalks  into  the  machine, 
his  widow  cannot  recover  from  his  employer  for  his  death  under 
the  provisions  of  section  73  of  the  same  chapter,  although  she 
shows  that  the  accident  was  caused  by  the  sprocket  around  which 
the  chain  passed  having  become  worn  by  use,  that  the  duty  of 
inspecting  and  caring  for  the  safety  of  the  cutting  machine  was 
entrusted  to  the  superintendent,  and  that  the  superintendent  was 
negligent  in  not  discovering  the  defect  and  causing  the  necessary 
repairs  to  be  made. 


165 

"The  negligence  of  an  employer  himself,"  for  which  he  is  liable 
under  R.  L.,  c.  106,  §  73  (Acts  of  1911,  c.  751),  if  it  results  in  the 
instant  death  or  death  without  conscious  suffering  of  an  em- 
ployee, does  not  include  the  negligence  of  one  to  whom  the  em- 
ployer has  delegated  the  duty  of  maintaining  machinery  in  a  safe 
condition,  for  which,  among  other  things,  the  employer  is  made 
liable  by  the  succeeding  words  of  the  same  section. 

Employer's  Liability  for  Injury  to  Farm  Hand.    Assumption  of 

Risk. 

SMITH  V.  LINCOLN. 

198  Mass.  388. 

At  the  trial  of  an  action  of  tort  against  a  farmer  by  one  em- 
ployed by  him  as  a  farm  hand,  who  sought  recovery  for  personal 
injuries  received  by  him  by  falling  into  a  silo  in  the  defendant's 
barn,  it  appeared  that  the  plaintiff  was  employed  at  about  noon, 
and,  at  once  after  his  employment,  and  before  he  had  inspected 
the  premises,  was  directed  to  go  to  defendant's  barn  and  clean 
certain  stalls  which  were  at  the  left  of  the  door;  that  he  opened 
the  door  to  the  barn  and  entered  and  closed  the  door  behind  him 
because  he  thought  that  the  defendant  wanted  it  kept  so;  that 
the  barn  was  then  as  dark  as  on  a  dark  night,  and,  in  proceeding 
to  the  stalls  which  he  was  to  clean,  he  fell  into  the  silo,  which 
was  directly  in  his  path;  that  the  opening  to  the  silo  was  about 
3  feet  wide  and,  if  he  had  left  the  door  open,  he  would  have  been 
able  to  see  and  avoid  it.  Held,  that  the  plaintiff  had  assumed 
the  risk  of  the  injury  which  he  received. 

8.    CRANBERRY  BOGS. 
Right  of  Cranberry  Grower  to  build  Dam  on  Nonnavigable  Stream. 

HOWES  v.  GRUSH. 
131  Mass.  207. 

It  is  within  the  power  of  the  Legislature  to  authorize  such 
a  use  of  a  stream  which  is  not  navigable  as  will  wholly  destroy 
a  public  fishery. 

In  an  action  by  the  owner  of  a  cranberry  meadow  against  a 
fish  committee  of  a  town  for  tearing  away  the  plaintiff's  dam, 
built  under  the  provisions  of  the  St.  of  1866,  c.  206  (R.  L.,  c.  196, 
§  39),  across  a  stream  not  navigable,  the  defendant  asked  the 
judge  to  rule  that  if  the  plaintiff  could  have  constructed  his  dam 


166 

or  meadow  so  that  his  use  of  the  water  would  not  injure  a  public 
fishery  he  was  bound  to  do  it,  and,  if  he  did  not,  the  committee 
had  the  right  to  reduce  the  dam  to  the  point  necessary  to  avoid 
such  interference  or  injury.  The  judge  declined  so  to  rule;  but 
instructed  the  jury  that  it  was  the  duty  of  the  plaintiff  to  use 
reasonable  care,  skill  and  prudence  in  building  and  maintaining 
the  dam,  in  the  preparation,  by  way  of  grading  and  otherwise, 
of  his  meadow  before  it  was  overflowed,  and  in  raising  and  draw- 
ing off  the  water,  so  as  to  do  the  least  injury  to  the  fishery  con- 
sistent with  a  reasonable  exercise  of  his  right  to  construct  a  dam, 
giving  full  instructions  as  to  the  meaning  of  the  words  "  reason- 
able care,  skill  and  prudence;"  and  that,  if  the  plaintiff  so 
exercised  his  right,  and  drew  off  the  water  at  a  proper  time  and 
only  in  a  manner  necessary  for  the  cultivation  of  cranberries,  the 
plaintiff  was  not  responsible  for  injury  to  the  fishery  by  reason  of 
the  spawn  of  the  fish  being  deposited  in  shallow  water  on  the 
meadow  and  injured  by  the  drawing  off  of  the  water;  and  that, 
upon  such  a  state  of  facts,  the  defendant  had  no  right  to  remove 
the  dam.  Held,  that  the  defendant  had  no  ground  of  exception. 

In  an  action  by  the  owner  of  a  cranberry  meadow  against  a 
fish  committee  of  a  town  for  tearing  away  the  plaintiff's  dam, 
built  under  the  provisions  of  St.  of  1866,  c.  206  (R.  L.,  c.  196, 
§  39),  across  a  stream  not  navigable,  the  defendant  requested  the 
judge  to  rule  that  if  the  dam  was  built,  without  permission  of  the 
town,  on  land  of  the  town,  or  under  the  bridge,  the  defendant 
had  the  right  to  remove  it.  The  judge  declined  so  to  rule,  but 
instructed  the  jury  that  the  plaintiff  had  no  right  to  build  his 
dam  in  the  highway  with  or  without  the  consent  of  the  town,  nor 
to  build  it  on  land  of  the  town  without  the  consent  of  the  town; 
and  that,  if  it  was  so  built,  the  defendant  had  the  right  to  remove 
it.  Held,  that  the  defendant  had  no  ground  of  exception. 

In  an  action  by  the  owner  of  a  cranberry  bog  for  the  removal 
of  his  dam,  the  jury  were  instructed  not  to  regard  the  injury 
caused  by  frost  and  insects,  after  the  date  of  the  writ,  as  distinct 
and  independent  grounds  of  damage,  but  that  the  true  measure 
of,  damages  was  the  diminution  in  value  of  the  land  for  cranberry 
culture  caused  by  the  act  of  the  defendant.  Held,  that  the 
defendant  had  no  ground  of  exception. 


167 


Right  to  flow  Cranberry  Bog. 

HlNGKLEY    V.    NlCKERSON. 

117  Mass.  213. 

Neither  the  provision  of  the  Gen.  Sts.,  c.  149,  §  2  (R.  L.,  c. 
196,  §  2),  that  no  mill  dam  shall  be  erected  to  the  injury  of  any 
mill  lawfully  existing  on  the  same  stream,  nor  the  fact  of  any 
right  acquired  for  an  ancient  mill  by  prescription,  prevents  the 
erection,  above  an  existing  mill,  of  a  dam,  under  the  St.  of  1866, 
c.  206  (R.  L.,  c.  196,  §  39),  for  the  purpose  of  flowing  land  appro- 
priated to  the  cultivation  of  the  cranberry,  reasonably  adapted 
to  the  character  of  the  stream,  although  its  effect  may  be  to 
modify  or  disturb  somewhat  the  regularity  of  the  flow  of  the 
current. 

Under  the  St.  of  1866,  c.  206  (R.  L.,  c.  196,  §  39),  authorizing 
the  maintaining  a  dam  upon  an  unnavigable  stream  for  the 
purpose  of  flowing  a  cranberry  meadow,  a  person  who  withdraws 
for  such  purpose,  and  for  a  reasonable  time,  the  water  of  a 
stream  by  means  of  a  dam  is  not,  if  his  meadow  is  not  too  large 
to  be  flowed  by  the  stream,  liable  to  the  owner  of  a  similar 
meadow  below  upon  the  same  stream  who  is  thereby  deprived  of 
sufficient  water  to  flow  it  for  several  days  during  the  time  when 
it  is  equally  necessary  for  each. 

Gathering  Cranberries  on  Lord's  Day. 

COMMONWEALTH  v.  THIE. 

190  Mass.  578. 

Gathering  cranberries  on  the  Lord's  day,  when  there  is  an 
unusually  large  crop  but  no  sudden  and  unexpected  emergency, 
is  not  a  work  of  necessity  within  the  meaning  of  St.  1904,  c.  460, 
§2.  . 

9.    MISCELLANEOUS. 

Adverse  Possession  of  Right  of  Way. 

BALL  v.  ALLEN. 

216  Mass.  469. 

[PART  OP  REPORTER'S  HEADNOTE.] 

The  owner  of  a  farm,  through  which  the  owner  of  an  adjoining 
farm  has  a  defined  right  of  way,  not  only  may  fence  the  sides  of 
the  way,  but  also  may  erect  and  maintain  at  his  own  expense 
such  gates  or  bars  across  the  ends  of  the  way  as  are  reasonably 


168 

necessary  for  his  own  protection  in  the  pasturage  of  cattle  or 
other  proper  use  and  enjoyment  of  his  own  property. 

Where  a  farm  is  crossed  by  a  defined  right  of  way  belonging  to 
the  owner  of  the  adjoining  farm,  it  is  a  matter  of  common  knowl- 
edge that  bars  maintained  at  the  ends  of  the  way  by  the  owner 
of  the  servient  farm  make  the  use  of  the  way  by  the  owner  of  the 
dominant  farm  more  onerous  than  the  maintenance  of  a  gate  at 
each  end,  and,  if  the  owner  of  the  servient  farm  removes  a  gate 
at  one  end  of  the  way  and  substitutes  a  barway  which  he  has  not 
maintained  adversely  for  twenty  years,  he  can  be  compelled  by  a 
suit  in  equity  brought  by  the  owner  of  the  dominant  farm  to 
remove  the  bars  and  restore  the  gate. 

The  owner  of  a  farm,  crossed  by  a  right  of  way,  by  maintain- 
ing bars  across  the  end  of  such  way  for  more  than  twenty  years 
consecutively  'can  acquire  a  prescriptive  right  to  maintain  a  bar- 
way  there  instead  of  a  gate. 

The  owner  of  a  right  of  way  as  appurtenant  to  a  certain 
parcel  of  land  belonging  to  him  has  no  right  to  use  the  right  of 
way  for  the  purpose  of  access  to  other  land  belonging  to  him, 
although  such  other  land  abuts  on  the  dominant  estate. 

Keeping  Swine  within  Town  Limits, 
COMMONWEALTH  v.  RAWSON. 

183  Mass.  491. 

A  by-law  of  a  town,  adopted  when  the  town  had  a  board  of 
health  having  jurisdiction  of  offensive  trades  and  employment 
under  R.  L.,  c.  75,  §  1,  providing  that  no  person  should  keep 
within  the  limits  of  the  town  more  than  five  swine,  exclusive  of 
the  offspring  of  the  five  less  than  four  months  old,  is  invalid  as 
against  a  person  engaged  in  the  business  of  keeping  swine  in  that 
town. 

Rights  of  Officers  of  Agricultural  Societies. 
COMMONWEALTH  v.  RUGGLES. 

6  Allen,  588. 

The  officers  of  an  agricultural  society  have  no  authority  to 
define  and  fix  bounds,  for  other  purposes  than  those  specially 
enumerated  in  the  statute,  within  which  no  person  shall  be  per- 
mitted to  enter  or  pass  unless  in  conformity  with  their  regula- 
tions. 

The  officers  of  an  agricultural  society,  who  have  unlawfully 
fixed  and  defined  bounds  for  the  purpose  of  exhibiting  horses  in  a 


in  that 


169 


public  highway,  have  no  right  to  obstruct  public  travel  thereon, 
although  there  is  sufficient  room  for  public  travel  on  the  other 
parts  of  the  highway;  and  they  may  be  convicted  of  assault  and 
battery,  if  without  legal  process  they  have  arrested  a  person 
within  such  bounds  who,  when  directed  to  fall  back,  refused  to 
do  so,  and  without  malice  or  unlawful  intent  struck  the  horse  of  a 
marshal  of  the  society,  although  he  was  wilfully  and  maliciously 
in  the  highway  for  the  purpose  of  obstructing  the  exhibition  of 
horses  there. 

Form  of  Complaint  for  Case  of  Trespass. 

COMMONWEALTH  v.  DOUGHERTY. 

6  Gray,  349. 

[PART  OP  REPORTER'S  HEADNOTE.] 

A  complaint  on  St.  1855,  c.  457  (R.  L.,  c.  208,  §  105),  for  the 
malicious  destruction  of  a  tree,  shrub  or  vine  on  the  land  of 
another  must  aver  an  unlawful  entry  by  the  defendant  on  the 
land. 

List  of  Officers  enforcing  Agricultural  Laws  of  Massachusetts. 


NAME  OF  DEPARTMENT. 


Executive  Officer. 


Jurisdiction. 


State  Board  of  Agriculture,    . 


State  Board  of  Agriculture, 
jointly  with  Department  of 
Health. 

Agricultural  Experiment  Sta- 
tion. 


Board  of    Commissioners   on 
Fisheries  and  Game. 

Department  of  Weights  and 
Measures. 


Department  of  Health,  . 
State  Forester, 


Department    of   Animal    In- 
dustry. 


Wilfrid  Wheeler,  Secretary. 
Office,  136  State  House, 
Boston . 


H.  T.  Fernald,  State  Nursery 
Inspector.  Office,  Am- 
herst. 

B.  N.  Gates,  Inspector  of 
Apiaries.  Office,  Amherst. 


William  P.  Brooks,  Director. 
Office,  Amherst. 


George  H.  Graham,  Chair- 
man. Office,  319  State 
House,  Boston. 

Thure  Hanson,  Commis- 
sioner. Office,  194  State 
House,  Boston. 

Allan  J.  McLaughlin,  Com- 
missioner. Office,  312  State 
House,  Boston. 

F.  W.  Rane,  Forester.  Office, 
408  State  House,  Boston. 


L.  H.  Howard,  Commis- 
sioner. Office,  138  State 
House,  Boston. 


Bounty  to  agricultural  societies 

(see  page  13). 
Bounty    to     poultry    societies 

(see  page  21). 
Premiums     to     children     and 

youths  (see  page  22). 
Special  exhibitions  (see  page  23). 
Public  market  act  (see  page  101). 
Apple  grading  law  (see  page  116). 
Nursery   inspection    (see    page 

Blister     rust     inspection     (see 

page  24). 
Inspection  of  apiaries  (see  page 

29). 
Reclamation  of  wet  lands  (see 

page  81). 

Inspection  of  commercial  fertil- 
izers (see  page  32). 

Inspection  of  commercial  feed- 
stuffs  (see  page  39). 

Game  laws  (see  pages  86,  98,  99, 
and  also  "Fish  and  Game 
Laws"). 

Weights  and  measures  of  farm 
produce  (see  page  101,  and 
also  "Weights  and  Measure 
Laws"). 

Sale  of  meat  and  provisions 
(see  page  111,  and  also  "Laws 
relating  to  Public  Health"). 

Forestry  laws  and  suppression 
of  brown-tail  and  gypsy 
moths  (see  page  137,  and  also 
' '  Forestry  Laws  " ) . 

Suppression  of  contagious 
diseases  in  animals  (see 
"Laws  relating  to  Contagious 
Diseases  in  Animals"). 


INDICES 


INDEX  OF  STATUTES. 


REVISED  LAWS. 

Chapter  33: 

Sections  1,  2,  3, 
Sections  4,  5,  6, 
Sections  7,  8,  9, 
Sections  10,  11,  12, 
Sections  13,  14, 
Sections  15,  16,  17,  18, 
Sections  19,  20,  21,  22, 
Sections  23,  24,  25, 
Sections  26,  27,  28,  29, 
Sections  30,  31,  32, 
Sections  33,  34,  35, 
Sections  36,  37,  38,  39, 
Section  40, 

Chapter  56: 
Section  70, 
Section  71, 

Chapter  57: 
Sections  1,  2, 
Sections  21,  22, 
Sections  23,  24, 
Sections  25,  26,  27, 
Sections  28,  29,  30,  35, 
Sections  36,  37,  38,  39, 
Sections  60,  65,  66, 
Section  67, 
Section  68,      . 

Chapter  62: 
Section  3, 
Sections  4,  5, 

Chapter  75: 
Section  105,  . 

Chapter  76: 
Sections  72,  73, 
Sections  74, ,75,  76, 

Chapter  89 : 
Sections  1,2, 
Sections  3,  4,  6,  7,    . 
Sections  8,  9,  10,      . 
Sections  11,  12, 
Section  13, 

Chapter  92: 
Section  18, 

Chapter  102: 
Section  146,    . 


REVISED  LAWS  —  Con. 

PAGE 

Chapter  102  —  Con. 

PAGE 

.       121 

Sections  147,  148,  149,  150, 

.       90 

.     122 

Section  151,    . 

.       91 

.     123 

Sections  152,  153,    . 

.       92 

.      124 

Sections  154,  155,    . 

.       93 

.     125 

Sections  156,  157,  158,  159, 

.       94 

.     126 

Sections  160,  161,  162,      . 

.       95 

.     127 

Sections  163,  164,    . 

.       96 

.     128 

Sections  165,  166,     . 

.       97 

.     129 

Section  167,    . 

.     136 

.     130 

Chapter  124: 

.     131 

Section  1, 

.       13 

132 

Section  2,        ... 

14 

.     133 

Sections  3,  4,  5,  6,    . 

.       15 

Sections  7,  8,  9,  10, 

.       16 

.     Ill 

Sections  11,  12,  13,  14,      . 

.       17 

.     113 

Sections  15,  16,  17,  18,  19, 

.       18 

Sections  20,  21,  22, 

.       19 

.     103 

Section  23,       . 

.       20 

.     104 

Chapter  195: 

.     105 

Sections  1,  2,  3, 

'.       75 

.     106 

Sections  4,  5,  6,  7,   . 

.       76 

.     107 

Sections  8,  9,  10,  11,  12,  . 

.       77 

.     108 

Sections  13,  14,  15,  16,      . 

.       78 

.     109 

Sections  17,  18,  19, 

.       79 

.     110 

Sections  20,  21,  22,  23,  24, 

.       80 

.     Ill 

Section  25, 

.       81 

Chapter  196: 

.     101 

Sections  39,  40,  41, 

.       84 

.     102 

Sections  63,  64, 

.     103 

Chapter  208: 

.     115 

Sections  91,  98, 

.     133 

Sections  99,  100,  105, 

.     134 

.     113 

Sections  106,  107,  111,  121, 

.     135 

.     114 

ACTS  OF  1902. 

9 

Chapter  115,       . 

.     101 

.       10 

Chapter  116: 

.       11 

Section  4,         ... 

9 

12 

Chapter  226, 

.       97 

.       13 

Chapter  312: 

Section  2,        ... 

.     115 

.       88 

Chapter  544: 

Section  30, 

.     134 

.       89 

Section  33,      . 

.     135 

174 


ACTS  OP  1903. 

ACTS  OP  1911. 

PAGE 

Chapter  118: 

PAGE 

Chapter  100, 

.         91 

Sections  1,  2,  3, 

.       98 

Chapter  220: 

Sections  4,  5, 

.       99 

Section  2, 

.       115 

Chapter  173, 

.     133 

Chapter  407: 

Chapter  186, 

.       10 

88 

(^hnntpr  220* 

V_/HtiJL)lt;r  £i&\j  . 

Section  1, 

.       29 

ACTS  OF  1904. 

Sections  2,  3,  4, 

30 

Chapter  127, 

.       97 

Sections  5,  6, 

.       31 

Chapter  142, 

.       93 

Sections  7,  8,  9,  10, 

.       32 

Chapter  283, 

.       91 

Chapter  380: 

Chapter  444: 

Sections  1,  2, 

.     105 

Section  1, 

134 

Section  3,        .        r. 

.     106 

Sections  2,  3, 

.     136 

Chapter  388: 

Section  1, 

.       32 

ACTS  OP  1905. 

Section  2, 

33 

Chapter  106, 

.       92 

Sections  3,  4,  5, 

.       34 

Chapter  155: 

Sections  6,  7, 

.       35 

Section  10,      .          .          . 

.       10 

Section  8,        ... 

.       36 

Chapter  211, 

.       11 

Sections  9,  10, 

.       37 

Sections  11,  12, 

.       38 

ACTS  or  1907. 

Chapter  392, 

.       91 

Chapter  189, 
Chapter  241, 

.       15 
.       93 

Chapter  397, 
Chapter  600: 
Section  1, 

.     101 
109 

Chapter  293, 
Chapter  401, 

.     113 
.       10 

Sections  2,  3, 
Sections  4,  5, 

.     110 
.     Ill 

ACTS  OP  1908. 

Chapter  751,  Part  1: 
Sections  1,  2, 

.     139 

Chapter  245: 

Sections  1,  2,  3, 

.       20 

Chapter  329: 

ACTS  OP  1912. 

Section  6,        . 
Chapter  411: 
Section  1, 
Sections  2,  3, 
Chapter  416: 
Section  1, 

.     115 

.     Ill 
.     113 

.       12 

Chapter  246,       . 
Chapter  248: 
Section  2,        ... 
Chapter  260, 
Chapter  284, 
Chapter  411: 

.     104 

.     115 
13,  14 

.     102 

Section  1, 

.       23 

ACTS  OP  1909. 

Chapter  438, 

.       88 

Chapter  133, 

.       13 

Chapter  448, 

.     Ill 

Chapter  309: 

Chapter  500, 

.       20 

Sections  1,  2,  3,  4,   . 

.       99 

Chapter  507: 

Chapter  350, 

.     104 

Sections  1,  2,  3, 

.       24 

Chapter  428: 

Sections  4,  5,  6,        . 

25 

Sections  1,  2,  3, 

.       21 

Section  7,        ... 

.       26 

Section  4,        .         . 

.       22 

Sections  8,  9,  10,  11, 

.       27 

Chapter  474, 

.     115 

Sections  12,  13,  14,  15,     . 

.       28 

Sections  16,  17,  18, 

.       29 

ACTS  OP  1910. 

Chapter  527: 

Chapter  297, 

.     102 

Sections  1,  2, 

.       39 

Chapter  392, 

.       93 

Sections  3,  4, 

.       40 

Chapter  427: 

Sections  5,  6,  7, 

41 

Section  1, 

22 

Sections  8,  9, 

.       42 

175 


ACTS  or  1912  —  Con. 
Chapter  527  —  Con. 
Sections  10,  11,  12, 
Sections  13,  14, 
Section  15, 

ACTS  OF  1913. 
Chapter  176, 
Chapter  213  : 
Section  1, 
Section  2, 
Chapter  240, 
Chapter  319: 

PAGE 
43 

44 
.       45 

.     102 

.       15 
.       16 
.       13 

ACTS  OF  1914—  Con. 
Chapter  596: 
Sections  1,  2, 
Section  3, 
Chapter  627, 
Chapter  707: 
Sections  1,  2,  3, 
Sections  4,  5,  6, 
Sections  7,  8,  9,  10, 

GENERAL  ACTS  OF  1915. 
Chapter  43, 

PAGE 

.       82 
.       83 
.     Ill 

.       72 
.       73 
.       74 

.     102 

Section  1, 
Chapter  447: 

22 

Chapter  109: 

.     138 

Sections  1,  2,  3, 
Sections  4,  5,  6, 
Sections  7,  8,  9, 
Section  10,       . 
Chapter  529  : 

.       69 
.       70 
.       71 

.       72 

Chapter  114,       . 
Chapter  118: 
Section  1, 
Section  2,         ... 
Section  3, 

9 

.       69 
71,72 
.       70 

Sections  1,  2, 
Sections  3,  4,  5, 
Chapter  552, 
Chapter  687: 
Section  1,     •    . 
Chapter  713, 
Chapter  744, 
Section  1, 
Chapter  759: 

86 

.       87 
.       88 

.     115 
.     104 

.       86 

.       88 

Chapter  119: 
Sections  1,  2,  3, 
Chapter  140: 
Section  1, 
Chapter  158, 
Chapter  161, 
Chapter  231: 
Sections  1,  2, 
Section  3,        ... 

.     101 

.     139 
.     110 
.       24 

.       57 

58 

Sections  1,2, 
Sections  3,  4,  5,  6,   . 
Section  7,        ... 

.       81 
82 
83 

Sections  4,  5, 
Sections  6,  7,  8, 
Sections  9   10, 

.       59 
.       60 
61 

ACTS  OF  1914. 
Chapter  120, 
Chapter  209, 
Chapter  239: 
Section  1, 

.       98 
.       14 

.     136 

Section  11,      ... 
Section  13,      . 
Sections  14,  15, 
Section  16, 
Sections  17,  18, 
Sections  19,  20, 

.       62 
.-     63 
.       64 
.       65 
.       66 
.       67 

Chapter  267, 
Chapter  276, 
Chapter  298: 
Sections  1,  2,  . 
Section  3, 

22 
.       13 

.       21 
22 

Sections  21,  22,  23, 
Chapter  239,       . 
Chapter  250, 
Chapter  261  : 
Sections  1,  2, 

.       68 
.     110 
11 

.     116 

Chapter  34-0: 
Sections  1,  2, 
Chapter  401: 
Sections  1,  2,  3,  4,   . 

.     137 
.     100 

Sections  3,  4,  5, 
Sections  6,  7,  8,  9,  10, 
Sections  11,  12,  13, 
Sections  14,  15,  16, 

.     117 
.     118 
.     119 
.     120 

Chapter  404: 

.     137 

Chapter  268: 
Sections  1,  2,  3, 

.       46 

.     138 

Sections  4,  5,  6, 

.       47 

Chapter  424, 
Chapter  453, 
Chapter  594: 
Section  1,                   .          .  * 
Section  2, 

.       20 
.       86 

.     138 
139 

Sections  7,  8,  9,  10, 
Sections  11,  12,  13, 
Section  14,      . 
Section  15,      . 
Sections  16,  17, 

.       48 
.       49 
.       50 
.       51 
.       52 

176 


GENERAL  ACTS  OF 
Chapter  268  —  Con. 
Sections  18,  19, 

1915  —  Con. 

PAGE 

53 

GENERAL  ACTS 
Chapter  46  —  Con. 

OF  1916  —  Cow. 

PAGE 
11 

Sections  20,  21, 
Sections  22,  23,  24, 
Sections  25,  26, 

GENERAL  ACTS 
Chapter  45: 
Section  1, 
Chapter  46: 
Section  1, 

.       54 
.       55 
.       56 

OF  1916. 
.       29 
12 

Chapter  49: 
Section  1, 
Chapter  63: 
Section  1, 
Section  2, 
Section  3, 
Section  4, 
Chapter  79,         .< 
Chapter  91, 

9 

.     116 
.     117 
.     118 
.     119 
.     101 
.       24 

INDEX  OF  CASES. 


CITED  BY  NAME. 

PAGE 

Alger  v.  Pool,  11  Gushing,  450, 122,  153 

Anthony  v.  Anthony,  6  Allen,  408 127,  128,  162 

Ball  v.  Allen,  216  Mass.  469,    % 167 

Barrett  v.  Maiden  &  Melrose  R.R.,  3  Allen,  101, 89 

Binney  v.  Hull,  5  Pickering,  503,        .  ....       122,  150 

Blackwell  v.  Phinney,  126  Mass.  458 84 

Boulester  v.  Parsons,  161  Mass.  182, 89,  145 

Boylan  v.  Everett,  172  Mass.  453 ^89 

Brewers  Crosby,  11  Gray,  29,  .          .          .          .          .          .          .         89,145 

Bruce  v.  Holden,  21  Pickering,  187, 128,  130,  157 

Bruce  v.  White,  4  Gray,  345 128,  161 

Buddington  v.  Shearer,  20  Pickering,  477, 89,  145 

Byron  v.  Crippen,  4  Gray,  312, 128 

Cheney  v.  Holden,  16  Gray,  125 .92 

Cleverly  v.  Towle,  3  Allen,  39, 128,  131,  157 

Coffin  v.  Field,  7  Cushing,  355 160 

Coffin  v.  Vincent,  12  Gushing,  98, 128,129,156 

Collingill  ».  Haverhill,  128  Mass.  218 89 

Commonwealth  ».  Beale,  5  Pickering,  514, 132,  161 

Commonwealth  v.  Boyden,  183  Mass.  1,     .  .          .          .          .          .     148 

Commonwealth  v.  Brooks,  9  Gray,  299, 133 

Commonwealth  v.  Clay  (decided  1916), 148 

Commonwealth  v.  Dougherty,  6  Gray,  349, 135,  169 

Commonwealth  v.  Dow,  10  Metcalf,  382, 97,  146 

Commonwealth  v.  Leach,  1  Mass.  59,          .          .          .          .          .          .          .     133 

Commonwealth  v.  McLaughlin,  105  Mass.  460, 133 

Commonwealth  v,  Rawson,  183  Mass.  491,          ......     168 

Commonwealth  v.  Raymond,  97  Mass.  567 114,  147 

Commonwealth  v.  Ruggles,  6  Allen,  588, 17,  18,  19,  168 

Commonwealth  v.  White,  190  Mass.  578 167 

Commonwealth  v.  Towle,  9  Gray,  304, 133 

Commonwealth  v.  Walden,  3  Cushing,  558,          ......     133 

Conners  v.  Loker,  134  Mass.  510, 129,  161 

Coomes  v.  Burt,  22  Pickering,  422,    .          . 76 

Crippen  v.  Byron,  4  Gray,  314, 128 

Daniels  v.  Pond,  21  Pickering,  367,    .          .          .          .  .          .          .     163 

Day  v.  Dolan,  174  Mass.  524, 122 

Day  v.  Hurlburt,  11  Metcalf,  321, 75,  79,  142 

Dean  v.  Lindsey,  16  Gray,  264 128,  155 

Eames  ».  Salem  &  Lowell  R.R.  Co.,  98  Mass.  560 121,  151 

Eaton  v.  Kegan,  114  Mass.  433, 106,  147 

Fay  v.  Elliott,  154  Mass.  587 121,  125,  148 

Field  v.  Coleman,  5  Cushing,  267,      .          . 132 

Field  ».  Jacobs,  12  Metcalf,  118,         .          . 159 

Field  v.  Nantucket,  1  Cushing,  11,  124,  125,  150 


178 


PAGE 

Fletcher  v.  Herring,  112  Mass.  382, 163 

Folger  v.  Hinckley,  5  Gushing,  263 128,  130,  160 

Galvin  v.  Parker,  154  Mass.  346, 89 

Hartford  v.  Brady,  114  Mass.  466,     ....  .       129,151 

Hathaway  v.  Tinkham,  148  Mass.  85,  . '         .          .          .          .89,  145 

Hemmenway  v.  Wood,  1  Pickering,  524,     .          .          .          .          .          .          .114 

Henry  v.  Thomas,  119  Mass.  583, 75 

Hinckley  v.  Nickerson,  117  Mass.  213,        .          .          .     «     .          .          .         84,167 

Holbrook  v.  McBride,  4  Gray,  220 121 

Howes  v.  Crush,  131  Mass.  207,         ....  84,  165 

Johnson  v.  Griswold,  179  Mass.  580, 143 

Kennedy  v.  Owen,  131  Mass.  431, 122,124,153 

Kennedy  v.  Owen,  134  Mass.  227, 121,  122,  124,  153 

Lamb  v.  Hicks,  11  Metcalf,  496,         .          .          .          .  121,  122,  123,  126,  152 

LeForest  ».  Tolman,  117  Mass.  109, 89 

Leonard  v.  Doherty,  174  Mass.  570, 128 

Little  v.  Lothrop,  5  Greenleaf  (Maine),  356,        .  .  129,  149 

McCarthy  «.  Guild,  12  Metcalf,  291, 89,  146 

McLaughlin  v.  Kemp,  152  Mass.  7 89 

Melody  v.  Reab,  4  Mass.  471 132 

Merrick  v.  Work,  10  Allen,  544, 129,  130,  160 

Mitchell  v.  Clapp,  12  Gushing,  278,  ....  ....       89 

Moyle  v.  Drake,  141  Mass.  241 .134 

Nason  v.  Tobey,  182  Mass.  314, 162 

Nesbett  v.  Wilbur,  177  Mass.  200 90,  144 

Newell  v.  Hill,  2  Metcalf,  180 121,  151 

Newhouse  v.  Hatch,  126  Mass.  364, 129,  130,  159 

O'Malley  v.  Meyer,  221  Mass.  198,    .  .  .  .149 

Osborn  v.  Selectmen  of  Lenox,  2  Allen,  207 92,  144 

Parker  v.  Jones,  1  Allen,  270 128,  155 

Patrick  Keaney's  Case,  217  Mass.  5, 163 

Peckham  v.  Holman,  11  Pickering,  484 .     114 

Phillips  v.  Bristol,  131  Mass.  426, 128,  129,  155 

Pickard  v.  Howe,  12  Metcalf,  198, 128,  130,  131,  158 

Pressey «.  Wirth,  3  Allen,  191,  ...  .89,  146 

Prop,  on  Chas.  v.  Prop,  on  Neponset,  7  Pickering,  207,         .  .77 

Raymond  v,  Hodgson,  161  Mass.  184,         .'....  89 

Rice  v.  Moorhouse,  150  Mass.  482, 127 

Rideout  v.  Knox,  148  Mass.  368 127 

Rowley  v.  Ellis,  197  Mass.  391 164 

Rust  v.  Low  &  Stanwood,  6  Mass.  90 122,  129,  148 

Sanderson  v.  Lawrence,  2  Gray,  178, 128,  157 

Scott  v.  Dickinson,  14  Pickering,  276,         ....  121,  122,  123,  154 

Searles  v.  Ladd,  123  Mass.  580,          .  89 

Sears  v.  Inhab.  of  Charlemont,  6  Allen,  437,        ....         121,  122,  152 

Sherman  v.  Braman,  13  Metcalf,  407, 129,  130,  158 

Sherman  v.  Favor,  1  Allen,  191,          ....  .89,  145 

Sherman  v.  Tobey,  3  Allen,  7, 79,  142 

Smith  v.  Gates,  21  Pickering,  55 129,  131,  162 

Smith  v.  Lincoln,  198  Mass.  388 165 

Smith  v.  Morse,  148  Mass.  407,          .          . ' 127 

Smith  v.  Smith,  148  Mass.  1,    . 75 

Spaulding  v.  Smith,  162  Mass.  543 127,  154 

Stackpole  v.  Healy,  16  Mass.  33, .       129,  149 

Talbot  v.  Hudson,  16  Gray,  417 w  75,  141 


179 


PAGE 

Thayer  v.  Arnold,  4  Metcalf,  589, 121,  151 

Turner  v.  Nye,  154  Mass.  579, 75,  84,  141 

Upton  v.  Holden,  5  Metcalf,  360, 76 

Vinton  v.  Vinton,  17  Mass.  342 132 

White  v.  Lang,  128  Mass.  598,  . 89 

Whittemore  v.  Thomas,  153  Mass.  347,      .          .          .          .          .          .          .89 

Wild  v.  Skinner,  23  Pickering,  251, 128,  130,  156 

Wright  v.  Leonard,  4  Gray,  150, .         76,  142 

Worcester  v.  Ashworth,  160  Mass.  186,       .  .      92,  93,  96,  143 


CITED  BY  VOLUME  AND  PAGE. 
1  Allen,  191 89.  145 

1  Allen,  270 128,  155 

2  Allen,  207 *  .          .          ...  92,  144 

3  Allen,  7, 79,  142 

3  Allen,  39, 128,  131,  157 

3  Allen,  101, 89 

3  Allen,  191, 89,  146 

6  Allen,  408 127,  128,  162 

6  Allen,  437, 121,  122,  152 

6  Allen,  588, 17,  18,  19,  168 

10  Allen,  544, 129,  130,  160 

1  Gushing,  11,  124,  125,  150 

3  Gushing,  558 133 

5  Gushing,  263, 128,  130,  160 

5  Gushing,  267, : 132 

11  Gushing,  450 122,  153 

12  Gushing,  98, 128,  129,  156 

12  Gushing,  278, 89 

2  Gray,  178, 128,  157 

4  Gray,  150, 76,  142 

4  Gray,  220, 121 

4  Gray,  312 128 

4  Gray,  314 128 

4  Gray,  345, 128,  161 

6  Gray,  349, 135,169- 

9  Gray,  299, 133 

9  Gray,  304, 133 

11  Gray,  29, 89,  145 

16  Gray,  125, 92 

16  Gray,  264, 128,  155 

16  Gray,  417, 75,  141 

SGreenleaf  (Maine),  356, 129,149 

1  Mass.  59 133 

4  Mass.  471, 132 

6  Mass.  90,     .          .          . 122,  129,  148 

16  Mass.  33, 129,  149 

17  Mass.  342 132 

97  Mass.  567 114,  147 

98  Mass.  560 121,  151 

105  Mass.  460 133 

112  Mass.  382, 163 

114  Mass.  433,         .          .'  .          . 106,  147 

114  Mass.  466,  129,  151 


180 


PAGE 

117  Mass.  109, '       .          .          .          .89 

117  Mass.  213 84,  167 

119  Mass.  583, ' 75 

123  Mass.  580, 89 

126  Mass.  364, 129,  130,  159 

126  Mass.  458 <     •          •  .84 

128  Mass.  218 89 

128  Mass.  598, 89 

131  Mass.  207, 84,  165 

131  Mass.  426,         .  128,  129,  155 

131  Mass.  431, 122,  124,  153 

134  Mass.  226, 121,  122,  124,  153 

134  Mass.  510, 129,  161 

141  Mass.  241 134 

148  Mass.  1, 75 

148  Mass.  85 89,  145 

148  Mass.  368, 127 

148  Mass.  409 127 

150  Mass  482,         . 127 

152  Mass.  7, 89 

153  Mass.  347, 89 

154  Mass.  346,         .          . .          .89 

154  Mass.  579, 75,  84,  141 

154  Mass.  587,         .          .          . 121,  126,  148 

160  Mass.  186, .      92,  93,  96,  143 

161  Mass.  182 89,  145 

161  Mass.  184,         .          .          .      ' 89 

162  Mass.  543 127,  154 

172  Mass.  453 .          .          .89 

174  Mass.  524,         . 122 

174  Mass.  570, 128 

177  Mass.  200, 90,  144 

179  Mass.  580, 143 

182  Mass.  314, .  .          .162 

183  Mass.  1 .148 

183  Mass.  491, 168 

190  Mass.  578, 167 

197  Mass.  391,         .          . 164 

198  Mass.  388 .165 

216  Mass.  469,         .          ...          .          .          .          .          .  .167 

217  Mass.  5, 163 

221  Mass.  198 .149 

2  Metcalf,  180,         .          .          .          .          .          .          .      -    .          .          .       121,  151 

4  Metcalf,  589 121,  151 

5  Metcalf,  360, • .          .          .          .          .76 

10  Metcalf,  382,       .          .          .          . 97,146 

11  Metcalf,  321,      ...          .          .          .          .          .          .  75,  79,  142 

11  Metcalf,  496 •   .          .  121,  122,  123,  126,  152 

12  Metcalf,  118,      .          .          . 159 

12  Metcalf,  198, .          .          128,  130,  131,  158 

12  Metcalf,  291,  .          .          . 89,  146 

13  Metcalf,  407, 129,  130,  158 

1  Pickering,  524,  .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .114 

5  Pickering,  503,  .          .          .          .  •        .          .      •    .          .          .          .       122,  150 

5  Pickering,  514,  .          .          .  132,  161 


181 


PAGE 

7  Pickering,  207, 77 

11  Pickering,  484 114 

14  Pickering,  276 121,  122,  123,  154 

20  Pickering,  477 89,  145 

21  Pickering,  55, 129,  131,  162 

21  Pickering,  187, •      .          .        128,  130,  157 

21  Pickering,  367, 163 

22  Pickering,  422,    .          .          .          . 76 

23  Pickering,  251 .        128,  130,  156 


GENEEAL  INDEX, 


PAGE 

A  grade,  for  apples,  defined,    .          .          .          .          .          ...          .          .116 

Adulterated,  in  relation  to  apples,  word  defined,         .          .          .          .          .118 

Agents,  nursery,  licenses  for,   .........         24 

Agricultural  College,  Massachusetts,  approval  of  County  Farm  Bureaus,      .         72 
Agricultural  demonstration  work,  towns  may  carry  on,       ....         74 

Experiment  Station,  director,  powers  and  duties  of, 

35,  36,  37,  40,  41,  42,  44 
and  horticultural  societies,  law  concerning,      ....         13 

Society,  annual  returns  of,     .          .          .          .          .          .          .16 

societies,  Board  to  fix  annual  meetings  of,  .          .          .10 

disposition  of  surplus  of,  .....          17 

exhibitions  by,  gaming  at,  prohibited,        ...         19 

preservation  of  peace  at,    .          .          .         19 

sale  near,  prohibited,          ...         19 

marshals,  powers  of,         ......          18 

membership  of,        .          .          .          .          .          .          .17 

mortgage  of  property  regulated,        .          .          .          .         15 

police  at  exhibitions  of,   .          .          .          .          .          .18 

premiums  to  be  offered  by,      .          .          .          ...         16 

rights  of  officers,     ......  17,  168 

sale  of  property  regulated,        .....         15 

to  receive  bounty,  .....         13 

Agriculture,  Board  of.     (See  Board  of  Agriculture.) 

encouragement  of,  among  children  and  youths,         ...         22 
bounty  for,        ......         14 

miscellaneous  laws  relating  to,        ......       121 

premiums  for  encouragement  of ,     .          .          .          .          .          .22 

Animals,  trespassing  on  land,  ........       135 

(See  also  Beasts.) 
Apiaries,  record  of,  to  be  kept,          ........         32 

Apiary  inspection  law,    ..........         29 

penalties  for  violation  of,          .....         32 

expenditure  for,  authorized,  ......         32 

inspector,  duties  of,      .........         30 

inspectors,  powers  of,  .          .          .          .          .          .  .          .32 

Apple  barrels,  branding  of,  size  of  type  required,        .          .          .          .          .118 

marks  permitted  on,  .          .'.'".          .          .          .          .117 

barrel,  standard,  defined,        .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .116 

box,  standard,  defined,  .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .116 

grading  law,          ..........       116 

closed  package  defined,        ......       120 

exemption  from,          .......       120 

inspectors,  powers  of,    .          .          .          .          .          .          .          ...       119 

legal  grades,  defined,     .........       116 

packages  to  be  marked  with  minimum  size  of  fruit,  117 


184 


Apples,  branding  of  closed  packages  of ,    . 
in  cold  storage,  inspection  of, 

meaning  of  adulterated,       ..... 
meaning  of  misbranded,       ..... 
sale  of  adulterated,  prohibited,     .... 
misbranded,  prohibited,     .... 
Appropriation  for  agricultural  societies,    .... 
apiary  inspection  law,  .... 
apple  grading  law,         .... 
clerks  of  Board  of  Agriculture, 
commercial  feedstuffs  law,     . 
Dairy  Bureau,      ..... 
encouragement  of  agriculture  among  children, 
orcharding, 
poultry  breeding, 
nursery  inspection  law,  . 

reclamation  of  wet  lands,       . 
secretary  of  Board  of  Agriculture, 
special  agricultural  exhibitions, 

State  Ornithologist, 

Arrest  of  trespassers  on  Lord's  day,  .... 

Attorney-General,  opinions  of,          ...... 

B  grade,  for  apples,  defined,    ....... 

Bank  Commissioner,  approval  of  credit  unions  by,     . 

report  to,  by  credit  unions, 
Banks,  farmland.     (See  Farmland  Banks.) 
Barrel  of  flour,  weight  of,        ....... 

potatoes,  weight  of,  ...... 

sweet  potatoes,  weight  of, 
standard,  for  apples,  defined,          . 
Baskets  for  berries,          ........ 

Beasts  at  large,  to  be  taken  up,        . 

impounded,   ..... 

doing  damage,  distraint  of,   . 

distrained,  action  of  replevin  for,  .... 

escaped  from  pound,    .... 

impounded,  auction  sale  of,  . 

may  be  sold  when,      . 
penalty  for  rescuing,  . 
rights  of  owner, 

sale  of,  disposition  of  proceeds  from,       .          .          .    % 
Beef,  inspection  of,          .          .          ._ 

weighers  of,  appointment,        ...... 

fees  for,       ....... 

Bees,  diseased,  instruction  in  treatment  of, 

to  be  quarantined,    .... 

keeping  of,  regulated,     ....... 

sale  of,  regulated,  .          .          .          .   ' 

shipping  of,  regulated,    ....... 

transportation  of,  regulated,   ...... 

(See  also  Apiaries.) 
Berries,  sale  of,  regulated,        ....... 

Board,  jom\,  for  reclamation  of  wet  land,  powers  of, 
of  Agriculture,  State,  election  of  delegate  to, 


PAGE 

117 

119 

118 

118 

118 

118 

14 

32 

120 

10 

44 

12 

22 

22 

21 

28 

83 

10 

23 

20 

135 

140 

117 
48 
55 


101 

101 

101 

116 

104 

127 

128 

129 

160 

132 

162 

131 

132 

160 

132 

103 

103 

103 

31 

30 

30 

30 

31 

31 


104 

81 

140 


185 


PAGE 

Board  of  Agriculture,  State,  may  withhold  bounty 15 

membership  of, 9 

powers  and  duties  of,     .          .  10,  11,  15,  81,  101 

publications  of,     .          .          .          .     •     .          .  10,  19 
right  to  representation  on,  .          .          .       140 

secretary  of,  powers  and  duties  of,  .  27,  119 

to  prescribe  rules  for  premiums  on  crops,          .         18 

Board  of  Health,  powers  of, 81,  112,  113,  114 

Bond  to  be  filed  by  petitioner  under  drainage  law,     .          .  79 

Boston,  market  limits,  exposure  of  food  in,  .  .    .  112 

Bounty,  agricultural,  amount  of,      .....  .  13,  15 

certificate  to  be  filed  for 15 

forfeiture  of,      ........  .16 

rules  for  distribution  of,      ........         15 

State  Board  may  withhold,          .....  .15 

to  poultry  associations,       ........         14 

poultry  premium,  distribution  of, 21 

Box,  standard,  for  apples,  defined,  .          .          .          ...          .          .          .       116 

Brown-tail  moth,  nursery  law  not  to  apply  to,  .          .          .          .          .          .28 

Bushel,  weight  of,  for  farm  products,        .......       102 

Calves,  slaughter  of,        .          .          .          .          ...          .          .          .          .       147 

Cattle.     (See  also  Animals,  Beasts,  Oxen,  Pound.) 

escaping,  liability  of  owner  for,      .......       151 

impounding  of,    .  .          .          .          .          .          .          ...         127,  161 

keeper  of,  meaning  of,  ........       161 

liability  of  person  distraining,        .  .          .          .          .          .          .       160 

malicious  killing  of,  penalty  for,    .......       133 

shows,  powers  of  marshals  at,        .......         18 

regulated,          .          .          .          .     •  .          .          .          .17 

straying,  liability  of  owner  for,      ......         149,  151 

when  under  control  of  keeper,       .......       161 

Cental,  certificate  of  sale  by,  .......:.       107 

weight  of,  .       . 102 

Cider,  sale  of , 148 

Commercial  feedstuffs.     (See  Feedstuffs,  Commercial.) 

fertilizer.     (See  Fertilizers,  Commercial.) 
Commissioner  of  corporations,  powers  of,  ......         71 

Commissioners,  county,  complaint  to,       .  /   .          .          .  .         81 

petition  to,  regarding  drainage,      .          .          .          .         79 

powers  of,  in  relation  to  drainage,  .          .  79,  142 

in  relation  to  dogs,        ....         93 

drainage.     (See  Drainage  Commissioners.) 
Commodities,  weight  of,  ..'.......       101 

Common  field,  liability  of  owners  of,         .......       154 

Commonwealth  to  acquire  land  for  reclamation,         .....         81 

Co-operation,  laws  relating  to,          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .46 

Co-operative  associations,        .........         69 

apportionment  of  earnings  of,     ....         70 

articles  of  organization,  fee  for  filing,  .          .         72 

capital  stock  of,         ......         69 

certificate  of  organization,  ....         71 

distribution  of  earnings  of,          .  .          .70 

incorporation  of,  '  .69 

investment  of  reserve  fund  of ,    .          .          .          .         70- 


186 


PAGE 

Co-operative,  use  of  word,  restricted,        .......         71 

County  Commissioners.     (See  Commissioners,  County.) 

County  Farm  Bureaus, 72 

advisory  boards  of,        ...          .          .          .          .73 

agents,  appointment  of,          .          .          .          .       -  .         72 

duties  of,  .          .  .          .          .72 

approval  by  Massachusetts  Agricultural  College,      .         72 
expenses  of,  .......         74 

finance  boards,  appointment  of,  .          .          .73 

finance  boards,  duties  of,  .          .          .          .73 

not  to  be  maintained  in  certain  counties,          .          .         75 
powers  of ,    .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .73 

to  receive  county  aid,   ......         72 

Cranberries,  gathering  of,  on  Lord's  day,  ......       167 

legal  barrel  for 105 

legal  crate  for,     .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .       105 

Massachusetts  standard  measure  for,      .....       105 

net  weight  of,  to  be  marked,  ......       106 

Cranberry  bog,  right  to  flow,  .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .167 

bogs 165 

dam,  apportionment  of  expense  on,  .....         84 

right  of  grower  to  build,  .          .          .          .          .          .165 

land .84 

Credit,  rural,  laws  relating  to,          .........         46 

Credit  unions,       '.........  .46 

approval  of,  by  Bank  Commissioner,  .....         48 

board  of  directors,  election  of ,     .          .          .          .          .          .50 

number  of ,     .          .          .          .          .          .50 

powers  and  duties  of,  .          .          .         51 

by-laws,  amendment  of,     .          .          .          .          .          .          .50 

of, ...         47 

capital  to  be  unlimited,      .......         48 

*        certain  officers  of,  not  to  receive  compensation,     ...         53 
property  of,  exempt  from  taxation,  .          .          .          .48 

credit  committee  of,  .......         50 

deposits  and  loans,    ........         47 

directors  of,  restrictions  on,         ......         54 

disposition  of  funds  on  withdrawal  from,      ....         56 

dissolution  of ,  .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .56 

dividends  of,  how  paid,      ...... 

source,  .......         55 

entrance  fee  for,         ........         50 

expulsion  of  members  of ,    .          .          .          .          .          .          .55 

fiscal  year  of ,    .          .          :          .          .          .          .          .          .49 

guaranty  fund  of ,  .          .          .          .          .          .          .54 

incorporation  of .........         46 

investment  of  funds,  .......         49 

loans,  purposes  of,     ...... 

to  be  approved,        .......         52 

meetings  of ,.......-  .49 

officers,  election  of,    .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .51 

compensation  of ,   .          .          .          .          .          .          .54 

organization  of,          ........         46 

report  by,  to  Bank  Commissioner,       .....         55 

restrictions  on,  ........         47 


187 


PAGE 

Credit  unions,  sale  of  farmland  bonds  by,          ...  .53 

shares  may  be  issued  to  minors,  .....         48 

supervisory  committee,  powers  and  duties  of,        .          .          .52,  54 
term  denned,    .........         46 

Dairy  Bureau,  annual  report  of,       ........          12 

appointment  of,         ........          12 

duties  of,  .........          12 

expenditures  of .........          12 

general  agent  of,        ....  ...          10 

powers,    ...  .  ...          13 

laws,  Dairy  Bureau  to  enforce,        .          .          .          .          .          .          .13 

Damages  caused  by  drainage  commissioners,     ......         78 

from  dogs, 89 

Decisions  of  Supreme  Court,   ........         141-169 

Deer,  killing  of,  regulated,       .........         86 

law,  penalty  for  violation  of,  .          .          .          .          .          .          .87 

loss,  damages  from,         .........         88 

open  season  established  for,    .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .86 

protection  of,  from  dogs,          ........         88 

Distrainor  of  beasts,  notice  by,         ........       159 

cattle,  liability  of,        ........       160 

to  state  demand,     .........       129 

Distraint  of  beasts  doing  damage,    ........       129 

Distress,  legality  of,  how  tried,         .          .          .  .          .          .          .       132 

Dog  bite,  liability  for  loss  of  services  from,         ......       146 

damage  to  sheep,  liability  of  owner  to  county,    .....       143 

damages 89,  143 

appointment  of  party  to  investigate,  .....         93 

liability  of  owner  or  keeper  for,  ......       145 

to  sheep,  .          ...          .          .          .          .          .          .92 

dangerous,  complaint  as  to,  .          .          .          .          .          .          .90 

doing  damage,  right  to  kill,       ........        144 

rewards  for,       ........         92 

injury  by,  right  to  reimbursement  for,    •    .  .          .          .          .          .       144 

killing  of,  form  of  warrant  for,  .......         96 

law,  constitutionality  of.  ........       143 

liability  for  injuries  by,    .........       143 

license  money,  in  Suffolk  County,      .......         95 

use  of,  when  unexpended,  ......         96 

licenses,  towns  may  make  by-laws  concerning,    .....         97 

may  be  killed  when,         ......  90 

muzzling  of,   ...........         94 

owner  of,  to  whom  liable,          .....  .95 

ownership  of,  hearing  to  determine,  .......         92 

owner's  knowledge  of  propensity  of,  .  .       146 

penalty  on  owner  for  not  confining,  ....  .93 

Dogs,  protecting  domestic  animals  from  injury  by,    .  .         97 

town  by-laws  licensing,  validity  of,  ...  .       146 

Drainage  commissioners,  appeal  from, 

compensation  of ,          .          .  .         77 

damage  caused  by,      ......         78 

may  open  dams,          ......         78 

powers  and  duties  of,  ....     76,  80,  142 


188 


PAGE 

Drainage  commissioners,  return  of,  ......  77,  142 

to  give  notice  before  opening  dam,        ...         78 
ditches,  construction  of,    .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .79 

expenses,  apportionment  of,  between  tenant  and  remainderman,    .         77 
assessment  of ,    .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .76 

collection  of ,  .          .  .          .          .          .76 

on  land,  subject  to  mortgage,       .          .          .          .          .77 

improvements,  repairs  on,  ........         80 

law,  constitutionality  of, 141 

laws  relating  to,  .          .  '        .          .          .          .          .          .46 

of  lowlands 75,  141 

petition  for, 79,  80 

work,  fees  of  town  or  city  officers  for,          .....         80 

Elm  beetle,  suppression  of,      .....  ...       137 

Employer's  liability  for  injuries  to  farm  labor,  .          .          .  139,  163,  164,  165 

Exhibitions,  special  agricultural,  appropriation  for,    .....         23 

(See  also  Agricultural  Societies.) 
Expenditure.     (See  Appropriation.) 

Fancy  grade,  for  apples,  defined,      .....  116 

Farm  Bureaus.     (See  County  Farm  Bureaus.) 

labor,  liability  for  injuries  to, 139,  163,  164,  165 

produce,  weights  and  measures  of,  .          .          .          .          .          .          .       101 

Farmers'  Clubs  to  receive  publications,    .....  .19 

Farmland  banks,   ........  .57 

amendment  of  agreement  of  organization  of,     .          .          .         68 
auditing  committee,       .......         61 

bonds  of ..........         65 

by-laws  of 59 

committees  of,       .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .60 

committee  on  loans,       .       •  .          .          .  .          .         61 

»  directors,  powers  and  duties  of ,        .          .          .          .          .60 

dissolution  of,        .          .          .          .v         .          .          .          .68 

dividends  and  surplus  of,  .         67 

exemptions  from  taxation,      .  .         68 

fiscal  year  of, .60 

holdings  of  real  estate  by,       ...  66 

incorporation  of,  ...  .57 

investments  of,      ...  .66 

land  reserve,  certificates  of ,    .          .          .          .  .64 

fund,          .          .  .63 

loans  by,      ....  .67 

meetings  of,  ........         62 

proxies  for,          .          .  .63 

quorum, 
officers  of ,    .          .          .          .          .          .  .60 

powers  and  duties  of,  .         60 

organization  of,  .          .          .          .          .          .          .         59 

powers  of,    ......  .58 

who  may  be  shareholders  in,  .  .64 

Feedstuff  law,  appropriation  for  enforcing,         .....  .44 

terms  defined,  .....  .39 

Feedstuff s,  adulterated,  sale  of,  prohibited, 

commercial, 39 


189 


PAGE 

Feedstuff s,  commercial,  analysis  of,  .......         42 

label  to  be  affixed  to  package,         ....         40 

filed 40 

registered,  .          .          .          .          .          .41 

misleading  tag,  prohibited 41 

packages  to  be  tagged,  .....         39 

penalty  for  selling 'without  tag,      ....         43 

provision  for  taking  samples  of,  .          .          .43 

tag  to  be  registered,      .          .          .          .          .          .         41 

Fence  a  nuisance,  when,  .........       127 

compensation  for  repairing,    ........       123 

controversies  as  to  repairs  of,          .          .          .          .          .          .          .       122 

duty  of  landowner  to  maintain,       .......       149 

line,  adjudication  of,  by  fence  viewers,    ......       153 

liability  of  owner  of  unenclosed  land  for,  ....       148 

statute  liability  for,         ........       149 

neglect  of,  proceedings,  ........       121 

partition,  liability  of  landowner  to  pay  for,      .....       150 

recovery  for,  ........       152 

prescriptive  obligation  to  maintain,          ......       150 

purchase  of  right  in,      .........       124 

remedy  against  adjoining  owner  for  repair  of,  ....       122 

removal  to  true  line,      .........       125 

right  of  landowner  to  place  on  adjoining  land,  ....       151 

suitable  for  railroad,      .........       151 

viewers,  adjudication  of  fence  line  by,     .          .          .          .          .          .       153 

authority  of,    .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .       152 

and  field  drivers,  law  relating  to,         .....       121 

enforcement  of  award  of ,  .          .          .          .          .          .          .153 

fees  of 126 

partial  assignment  of  fence  line  by,     .....       153 

penalty  for  neglect  of  duty,        ......       126 

powers  and  duties  of,  .    121,  122,  123,  125,  149 

requirement  of  notice  by,  .          .          .          .          .          .154 

water,  meaning  of,          .  .          .          .          .          .          .       152 

Fences  and  fence  viewers,  decisions  on,     .          .  ...       148 

defined .  ....       121 

double  damages  awarded  for,         ...  •       122 

maintenance  of, 121,  124 

obligations  of  citizens  for,     .          .  . 

on  land  bounded  by  water,  ....  •       123 

land  in  common, 

town  lines,      ...  ...       126 

to  be  maintained  by  adjoining  occupants,       .  .       121 

water, ,.          •          .126 

Fertilizer  law,  penalty  for  infringing,         .  •         37 

regulation  regarding  fees,   .  .  •  34, 37 

terms  defined,  .... 

Fertilizers,  commercial,  analysis  of,  .  .35 

certificate  of  filing  label  for,  .  .35 

label  to  be  filed,  . 

labeling  requirements,  .          .                              .      32, 33,  34 
law  concerning,    .... 
sale  of,         . 
taking  samples  of, 36 


190 


Field  driver,  authority  of,        ..... 

fees  of ,        .          .          .          .          ... 

drivers,  duties  of,  . 

law  relating  to,  . 
requirements  of  notice  by,   . 
rights  of,   .          .          .          ... 

Fisheries  and  Game,  Commissioners  on,  jurisdiction  of, 

powers  of,     . 
Flour,  weight  of  barrel,  ...... 

Food,  unwholesome,  penalty  for  selling,    . 

sale  of,    . 
Fruit  importations,  inspection  of ,     . 

(See  also  Apples,  Cranberries,  Berries.) 
Fruits,  nuts  and  vegetables,  law  relating  to  sale  of,    . 

Game  and  dog  statutes,  ..... 

Garden,  trespass  in,  forbidden,          .... 

Goats,  running  at  large,  regulated,  .... 

Grain  and  meal,  certificate  of  sale  by  cental, 
how  sold, 

law  relating  to,       . 
measurers  of,  duties  of,  . 
fees  for,     . 
to  be  appointed  for, 
penalty  for  short  weight, 
cutting  of,  penalty  for,  .... 

toll  for  grinding,  ...... 

Gypsy  moth,  ....... 

Hares,  protection  and  sale  of,  .... 

Hay  and  straw,  pressed,  grading  of,  ... 

inspectors  of,  duties, 

how  appointed,   . 

law  relating  to,        . 

marking  of ,     . 

penalty  for  selling  without  inspection, 

waiver  of  inspection, 

weighers  of,  how  appointed, 
Herdsgrass  seed,  sale  of,  regulated, 
Highway,  meaning  of,     .          .          .          .          . 

right  of  public  on,   . 
Hunting  of  pheasants  regulated,       .          ... 

Ice  ponds,     ........ 

Impounding  of  beasts  distrained,      .... 

amount  due  owner,       .... 

notice  of,     ...... 

Insect  pests,  destruction  of,     . 

Inspection  and  sales  act,          ..... 

apiary,  law  relating  to,    . 
apple  grading.     (See  Apples.) 
charges,  for  farm  buildings,  prohibited, 
nursery,  law  relating  to, 

(See  Nursery  Inspection.) 
Inspector  of  Apiaries,  State,  appointment  of,     . 


PAGE 

155 
128 
127 
127 
155 
155 
169 
133 
101 
115 
113 
29 

104 

86 
134 
133 
107 
106 
106 
106 
107 
106 
107 
134 
103 

28 

98 
108 
108 
108 
107 
108 
108 
109 
107 
109 
158 
149 

99 

84 
129 
131 
130 
137 
103 

29 

138 
24 

29 


191 


PAGE 

Labeling  commercial  feedstuff s,  ........  39 

fertilizers, 33, 34, 35 

Labor,  farm,  liability  for  injuries  to,         .......  139 

Leopard  moth,  suppression  of,           ........  137 

Licenses  for  nursery  agents,     .........  24 

Lowland,  drainage  of,  appointment  of  commissioners  for,  ....  75 

(See  also  Drainage.) 

improvement  of,       .........  75 

Manure,  ownership  of,    ..........       162 

title  to,  on  leased  farm 163 

Marketing,  statutes  relating  to,        ........       101 

Market  limits,  Boston,  exposure  of  food  in,  .          .          .          .          .112 

Marketmen,  permits  for,  right  of  city  to  require,        .  .  .          .          .        148 

Markets,  public,     .  101 

provision  for,          ........       101 

rules  and  regulations,      .          .          .          .          .          .          .101 

to  be  approved  by  State  Board  of  Agriculture,  .          .       101 

Meadows  and  swamps,  improvement  of,  .          .          .          .          .          .          .75 

(See  also  Drainage.) 
Meal.     (See  also  Grain  and  Meal.) 

how  sold,  ...........       106 

sale  of,  regulated,         .........       147 

weight  of, 102 

Measure.     (See  Cranberries,  Berries,  Nuts,  Weight.) 

Measurers.     (See  Grain  and  Meal.) 

Meat  and  provisions,  inspection  of,  .          .          .          .          .          .          .111 

sale  of, Ill 

unwholesome,  penalty  for  sale  of,    .          .          .          .          .          .          .114 

Millers,  law  relating  to,  .........       103 

legal  toll  for, .103 

to  keep  scales,    .......  .        103 

Minimum  size  of  apples  to  be  marked  on  package,     .          .          .          .          .117 

Moose,  protection  of,      ..........         88 

Notice  by  distrainor,       .          .          .          .          .          .  •    .          •          •       159 

field  driver  to  pound  keeper,     .....  .158 

from  field  driver  to  owner  of  beasts  impounded,       .          .          .          .158 

of  impounding,  waiver  of,      ....  .        159 

requirements  of,  by  field  driver,     ...  .158 

Nursery  agents,  licenses  of,      .........         24 

inspection,  expenditure  authorized,      .... 

law,  .  -         24 

exemptions  from, 
penalty  for  violation  of,       ...  .27 

prosecutions  under,     ...  .27 

season  for,         . 
inspector,  appeal  from,        ....  .27 

State,          .  .  .  24,169 

powers  of,          .          /  •  25, 28 

to  inspect  fruit  importations, 
inspectors,  duties  of, 
stock,  sale  of,  regulated,     .... 

transportation  of,  regulated, 
Nuts,  law  relating  to  sale  of  ,......•••       105 


192 


PAGE 

Oats,  sale  of 147 

Onions,  sale  of,  .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          '.       109 

Opinions  of  Attorney-General,          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .140 

Orcharding,  encouragement  of,          ........         22 

Orchards,  trespass  in,  forbidden,       ........       134 

Ornithologist,  State,  annual  report  of,       .          .          .      '    .          .          .          .20 

appointment  of,         .......         20 

compensation  of,       .          .          .          .          .          .          .20 

duties  of 20 

expenses  of,      .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .         20 

Oxen  going  at  large,  right  of  field  driver  to  take,        .          .          .          .          .155 

Package,  closed,  for  apples,  defined,  .......       120 

Penalty  for  cutting  timber,  wood,  grain,  etc.,    .          .          .          .          .          .134 

defacing  notice  against  trespassers,  .....       135 

failure  to  restrain  dog  after  notice,  .....         95 

killing  pheasants  illegally,       .          .          .          .          .          .          .100 

malicious  killing  of  cattle,       .......       133 

obstructing  inspector  of  Board  of  Health,          .          .          .          .113 

poultry  thieving,  .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .139 

sale  of  unwholesome  meat,      .          .          .          .          .          .          .114 

selling  adulterated  vinegar,     .          .          .          .          .          .          .109 

deleterious  vinegar,      .          .          .          .          .          .          .111 

pressed  hay  or  straw  without  inspection,         .          .          .       109 
unwholesome  food,       .          .          .          .          .          .          .115 

suffering  animals  to  trespass,  ......       135 

trespass  in  orchard,  garden,  etc.,     .          .          .          .          .          .       134 

unlawful  use  of  word  co-operative,  .          .          .          .          .71 

violation  of  apiary  inspection  law,  ......         32 

apple  grading  law,        ......       120 

deer  law,     ........         87 

feedstuffs  law,      .          .     \    .          .          •          •          .43 
fertilizer  inspection  law,         .....         37 

nursery  inspection  law,          .  27 

pheasant  law,       .......         99 

rabbit  law,  .......         99 

rule  of  Board  of  Health, 113 

weights  and  measures  law,    .....       104 
wilful  injuries  to  fences,          .          .          .          .          .          .          .134 

trees 134 

Petition  for  construction  of  roads  to  swamps 79 

Pheasant  law,  penalty  for  violation  of ,      .          .          .          .          .  '  .99 

Pheasants,  hunting  of,  regulated,     ........         99 

killing  of .100 

may  be  captured  and  killed  when,    ...  .       100 

open  season  may  be  declared  on,      ......       100 

propagation  of,       .          .          .  .          .          .          .          .99 

rearing  of ...........         99 

Phosphoric  acid,  legal  meaning  of,   ........         38 

Potash,  legal  meaning  of,         .........         38 

Potatoes,  sale  of .109 

sweet,  weight  of  barrel .       101 

weight  of  barrel  of,  ........       101 

Poultry  associations,  bounty  to, .  14,  21 

breeding,  encouragement  of,          .......         21 


193 


PAGE 

Poultry  premium  bounty,  distribution  of,  .          .          .          .          .          .21 

sale  of,  regulated,        .......  114 

thieving, 138 

penalty  for, 139 

posters 139 

Pound  breach,        ...........       161 

keepers,  fees  of,  ..........       128 

law  relating  to, 127,  155 

liability  of,  to  owner  of  beasts,  .          .          .          .          .160 

when  established  by  town,    .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .162 

Pounds,  law  relating  to,  .........       127 

penalty  for  injuring,  .........       127 

to  be  maintained,       .........       127 

Premiums  for  encouragement  of  agriculture,  among  children,       ...         22 

poultry  breeding,      .          .          .          .          .21 

trees  for  ship  timber,  .          .          .          .          .          .          .16 

to  be  offered  by  agricultural  societies,         .....         16 

Produce,  farm,  weights  and  measures  of,  ......       101 

Protein,  crude,  legal  meaning  of 39 

Provisions,  inspection  of,          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .111 

Public  markets.     (See  Markets,  Public.) 

Pulling  down  stone  walls,  penalty  for,       .          .          .          .          .          .          .133 

Rabbit  law,  penalty  for  violation  of ........  99 

Rabbits,  protection  of ...........  98 

right  of  farmers  to  trap,     ........  98 

sale  of, 98 

Rams,  when  not  to  go  at  large,         ........  133 

Remainderman,  appointment  of  drainage  expenses  on,        ....  77 

Repeal  of  previous  statute,      ....  29,  38,  45,  56,  87,  99,  100,  111 

Replevin,  action  of,  for  beasts  distrained,           ......  160 

when  commenced,      .......  159 

Right  of  way,  adverse  possession  of,          .......  167 

Roads,  construction  of,  to  swamps,            .......  79 

Rural  credit  laws,            ..........  46 

Sale  by  cental, 107 

near  agricultural  fairs,  prohibited,     .          .          .          .          .          .          .19 

of  apples  regulated, 116,117,118,119,120 

beef  regulated,    .....  ....       103 

bees  regulated,    .......  30 

berries  regulated,          .........       104 

cider  regulated,  ...........     148 

commercial  feedstuff s  regulated,    ..... 

fertilizers  regulated,    ...  .32 

cranberries  regulated,  .......  •       105 

fruits  regulated,  .  .104 

grain  regulated,  ......•••         106,  147 

meal  regulated,   .......  •       106 

meat  and  provisions  regulated, 

nursery  stock  regulated,        ....  .25 

nuts  regulated,  

onions  regulated,  ..... 

pheasants  regulated,    .          .          .          . 


194 


PAGE 

Sale  of  potatoes  regulated,      .........       109 

poultry  regulated,         .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .114 

pressed  hay  regulated,  ........       108 

straw  regulated,        .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .108 

provisions  regulated,    .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .111 

rabbits  regulated,          .........         98 

timothy  seed  regulated,         ........       109 

unwholesome  food  regulated,          .          .          .          .          .  113,  114,  115 

veal  regulated,     .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .113 

vegetables  regulated,    .........       104 

vinegar  regulated, 109,110,111 

Sales  and  marketing,  cases  on,          ........       147 

Salt,  sale  of, 109 

Secretary  of  State  Board  of  Agriculture.     (See  Board  of  Agriculture,  State, 

State  Board  of  Agriculture.) 
Seed  of  herdsgrass  and  timothy,  sale  of ,   .          .          .          .          .          .          .       109 

Sheep  damaged  by  dogs,  remedy  for  owner  of,  .....         94 

damages  from  dogs,       .........  90,  91 

straying  on  track,  liability  of  company  for,       .....       151 

(See  also  Dogs.) 
Slaughter  houses,  private,        .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .115 

Societies,  agricultural.     (See  Agricultural  Societies.) 

Stallions,  registration  of,          .......  .       136 

Standard,  use  of  word,  for  apples,    ......  .116 

cranberries,      .......       105 

State  Board  of  Agriculture  (See  also  Board  of  Agriculture,  State),        .          .  9 

appointment  of  agents  by, 
clerks,  salaries  of,  .....          10 

duties  of ,     .          .          .          .          .          .          .10 

how  constituted,  ....  9 

meetings  of ......  9 

members  to  receive  no  compensation,      .          .  9 

membership,  tenure  of,  ...  9 

reports  to  General  Court,       .          .  11 

Secretary,  appointment  of,     . 

salary  of,       .          .          .          .          .10 

powers  of,      ...  27,  119 

tenure  of  members  of,  ....  9 

to  oversee  Agricultural  College,      .          .          .          11 
Inspector  of  Apiaries.     (See  Apiaries,  Inspector  of.) 
Nursery  Inspector.     (See  Nursery  Inspector,  State.) 
Ornithologist.     (See  Ornithologist,  State.) 
Statutes,        ........  .  9-139 

providing  for  inspection,  regulation  and  control,  .  .         24 

Stone  walls,  penalty  for  pulling  down,       .....  .       133 

Straw,  pressed,  inspectors  of,  duties, 

how  appointed,    .... 

marking  of ........  •        108 

penalty  for  selling  without  inspection, 
waiver  of  inspection, 
Sunday,  gathering  cranberries  on,    ......  •       167 

Supreme  Court,  digest  of  decisions,  .... 

Swamps,  construction  of  roads  to,    . 

Swine,  keeping  within  town  limits,  .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .168- 


195 


PAGE 

Tenant,  apportionment  of  drainage  expenses  on,         .....  77 

ownership  of  manure  by,     ........  162 

Tent  caterpillar,  suppression  of,        ........  137 

Timothy  seed,  sale  of,  regulated,      ........  109 

Town  officers,  duties  of,            ........           92,  107 

penalty  on,        .........  95 

Towns  may  make  by-laws  concerning  dogs,       .                              ...  97 

Trees,  wilful  injuries  to,  penalty  for,          .......  134 

Trespass,  form  of  complaint  for,       .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .169 

laws, 133 

extracts  from,  to  be  printed, 136 

posters,  distribution  of,     ........  136 

Trespasser,  arrest  of,  on  Lord's  day,          .          .          .          .          .                    .  135 

Trespassers,  notice  against,  defacement  of,         ......  135 

Ungraded  apples  defined,         .          .          .          .          .          .          ..          .117 

0 

Veal,  inspection  of,          .          .          .          .  .  .  .  .  .  .113 

sale  of,  regulated,            .          .          .  .  .  .  .  .  .114 

Vegetables,  law  relating  to  sale  of ,   .          .  .  .  .  .  .  .       104 

Vinegar,  deleterious,  penalty  for  selling,    .  .  .  .  .  .  .111 

marking  of  receptacles  containing,  .  .  .  .  .  :       110 

sale  of,  regulated,      .........       109 

standard  of,  established,     .          .  .  .  .  .  .  .110 

Water  fences, -         .         123,  125 

Weights  and  measures  of  farm  produce,    .......       101 

Wet  land,  reclamation  of,  .          .          .  .          .          .          .81 

Wood,  cutting  of,  penalty  for,  ........       134 

Workmen's  compensation  act  relating  to  farmers,       .....       163 


YC 


492741 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 


